My Andromeda
by Mabyn
Summary: The power of galaxies has been forced upon her. Established Sam Jack.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Characters ain't mine. The story is. Don't sue me.

Story Notes: Established S/J relationship; general spoilers for season nine-ish. Oh, and Teal'c's actually in this one. :)

_Author's Note: This is not __nearly as polished as AIE or Left Unspoken. In fact, if this is the first story of mine you've read, don't use the following as an indicator of my work. Seriously. Don't make me beg. :) And, yes, I am paranoid and a perfectionist. Why do you ask?  
_

_Author's Note II: My writing for the past year or so has been mainly not-prose, and with NaNoWriMo just around the corner (YAY!), I thought I'd give my fiction mode a tune up, some exercise, a dusting, etc, yada.   
_

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**by Mabyn **

* * *

"You _what_?"

Daniel cringed and preemptively inched the phone away from his ear. "We, uh, lost her, Jack." The phone hung silently from his fingers and Daniel felt his pulse thud against the red plastic. Taking the opportunity to diffuse his friend's anger, he dove into an explanation. "P3A-294 has a history of Prior activity. We were checking it out, making sure the populace hadn't succumbed to the Ori's promises. From what we could tell they hadn't, which was a huge relief and..."

He trailed off momentarily and then rattled off a bevy of words before he had a chance to think himself out of them. "And that probably caused us to relax far more than we should've." He heard Jack swear and cringed. "Anyway, after talking to one of the locals, Sam mentioned something about a device located on the edge of town, Mitchell gave her the go-ahead, told her she had thirty minutes and...and she never came back." Daniel winced and prepared himself for the severe reprimand he knew was eminent.

But three seconds passed.

Then five.

Seven. "Jack?" he asked tentatively. "You there?"

Ten.

"I'll be there in a few hours. Tell Hank."

_Click_.

Daniel stared disbelievingly at the receiver in his hand for a moment before placing it back in its cradle. Without turning, he said, "He's coming," and then pegged the two other men in the room with heady glances.

"The phone didn't combust."

Daniel shook his head.

"You're not deaf in one ear."

"Nope."

Mitchell paused. "Huh."

Daniel smiled mirthlessly and opened the General's office door. "It's okay," he called. "Everyone's still alive."

General Landry poked his head around the corner and quickly surveyed the room. "I take it we're going to have a visitor soon."

Daniel nodded. "_Oh_ yeah..."

* * *

Jack strode through the corridors of the SGC, personell all but leaping out of his way. He waved off the few "Generals" and "Sirs" that trailed weakly out of familiar mouths. They knew why he was here and could see the intangible trail of smoke that licked his heels and the very tangible, intimidating expression he wore like a mask.

He didn't knock when he came to the briefing room. The door swung open and slammed mercilessly against the wall before bouncing out of its jam on the rebound. Four pairs of eyes instantly met his.

"How the _hell_ do you lose a member of your team?"

Daniel stepped towards him, more to place another body between Jack and Mitchell than anything. "You've lost me plenty of times."

"That was your own damn fault." Searing Mitchell with a venomous glance, he said, "I didn't give you permission to leave, and I never, _never_ left you unescorted on a recon mission."

"We didn't think it was a hostile world--" Mitchell began.

"Apparently you were wrong."

Mitchell's eyes flashed. "And Colonel Carter agreed with the assessment."

"_You_ were the commanding officer!"

"Jack," Landry began, placing a placating hand on his shoulder. "Placing blame isn't going to help the situation."

Jack tore his gaze from Mitchell and glanced at the other three men. His eyes closed as he clenched his teeth to the brink of splintering before letting a deep breath race from his lungs. His eyes still sparked brimstone when he again held Mitchell's gaze, but he nodded to him quickly, out of understanding if not forgiveness. Mitchell visibly eased as a result, but still looked shamed, a bit wary. Daniel didn't blame him.

Jack turned the rest of the men. "What have you got so far?"

"Well," Daniel said, "We've alerted the natives to the situation. They're on the lookout for her. We've combed the immediate area several times, swept the location with a UAV, both of which have turned up nothing." He paused and looked at Jack. "Not Sam and not any sort of device Sam would be interested in."

Jack frowned. "So, someone lured her away and, what? Kidnapped her?"

Mitchell nodded. "It looks that way, General."

Jack was quiet a moment and absently traced looping patterns on the tabletop. "Hank, I--"

But Landry interrupted him. "Jack, I'd like to put you in charge of the S and R. As long as you're here, I might was well put you to some use."

Jack looked up at Landry, a shadow of a smile briefly on his lips. "Why thank you, General."

"My pleasure, General." Then, his lips quirking slightly, he added, "Figured I might as well give it to you before you commandeered it. Save myself a pile of paperwork."

* * *

The human exceeded his expectations. She assimilated every nuance of the data he imprinted into her cortex and augmented it with her own knowledge. She astounded him with her ability to adapt, her willingness to yield and her hunger for more.

Of course, she did not know the ramifications of her actions. But then, they did not matter to her now, not when spoon fed her drug of choice. Knowledge was a drug, a powerful stimulant for the intelligent, the seeking. A potent narcotic he manipulated to his own ends. With her mind devouring the complexities he offered her, he was free to mold her brain to his own specifications.

She would have more knowledge than she ever dreamed possible, but he would have all the control.

A light flashed.

She screamed.

* * *

Despite the dull ache in his knee, Jack kept walking. He wasn't out of shape by any means, but he was no longer accustomed to the rigors of off-world missions as his protesting joints reminded him.

"Sir," Lieutenant Hasslman said, suddenly appearing at his elbow. "We've been over this terrain five times in the last two days. There's nothing here."

Jack held the man's gaze longer than necessary. The lieutenant shifted uncomfortably and, after a moment, fell back in with the rest of the team. Jack sighed and covered it with a cough. He knew the lieutenant was right, but was loathe to admit it. They'd been here a week and since scouted every inch within a twenty-five mile radius of the village and turned up nothing of import. Landry was two days away from recalling the teams and declaring Carter MIA. If that happened, he'd already decided he would retire and call in all the markers he had until he found her.

His radio crackled then. "Jack!" came Daniel's voice. "We found Lamdon! We're taking him to the prison."

A spark surged up Jack's spine and he motioned for the team to turn back towards the village. Charging to the front, he radioed back, "We're on our way. Be there in five. O'Neill out."

* * *

"Where is she?"

The man in front of him gazed back at him, his eyes unwavering. "With the gods."

Jack's eyes narrowed, his fingers flickering over his sidearm. "Which means what exactly?"

"They requested her. I complied."

His lips a thin, white line, Jack gripped the bars of the cell. "If anything happens to her, I will kill you myself."

Lamdon did not flinch. "Your words do not frighten me. I have done the work of the gods. They will protect me."

Daniel stepped forward then. "By 'the gods,' you mean...?"

"The Ori," Lamdon stated proudly. "The only true gods of man."

"The Ori are not gods," Teal'c told him, his jaw flexing in the dim light. "They are impostors. I doubt they will come to your aid if we discover Colonel Carter has been injured by your actions."

"You have served the false gods," Lamdon sneered. "Who are you to tell me my beliefs are false?"

"I renounced my beliefs in the Goa'ulds as gods long ago," Teal'c shot back. "You would be wise to do the same with the Ori and aid us in the recovery of Colonel Carter."

Lamdon stared at the three men in turn, his eyes hard and dark and unforgiving. "You would lead us into darkness, to a place I will not go. I will say nothing further."

Teal'c's eyes narrowed. "Then you will die."

_"Eventually_," Daniel said, quickly stepping between Teal'c and the man imprisoned. "But," he continued, glancing between Jack and Tealc, "if you cooperate, I'm sure we could see fit to spare your life so that you may...serve your gods further and, therefore, secure for yourself a greater place among believers." The man remained silent, but cocked an eyebrow at Daniel, obviously considering his request.

After a moment, Lamdon straightened. "I will answer your questions. To the glory of the gods."

Daniel stepped towards the cell. "Did your gods ask for her specifically?"

The man nodded.

"Did they tell you why?"

Lamdon looked scandalized. "It is not my place to question the gods."

"Of course not! No, never." Daniel paused. "Did you see them take her?"

"Yes. They claimed her in a beam of heavenly light."

Daniel's eyebrows bowed of their own accord, his mouth a round 'o'. "Thank you," he told Lamdon. "You have served your gods well." He turned then and followed Jack and Teal'c outside.

Jack frowned. "Some kind of ship?"

"I doubt it," Daniel told him. "The Ori have evolved beyond the need for space travel."

"It is likely they have taken Colonel Carter to a world outside of this galaxy," Teal'c muttered.

"In which case, we could search for the rest of our lives and never find her," Daniel added.

"Yeah, well," Jack said harshly, pushing past the both of them and towards their camp. "Forgive me for being an optimist, but I'm not givin' up quite yet."

Watching Jack's retreating form, Teal'c muttered, "I share O'Neill's sentiments. Colonel Carter would do no less for us."

"I agree." Daniel looked back at the prison entrance and sighed. "God, she'd better be all right."

* * *

She had stopped responding to his procedure three hours ago. She lay in front of him now writhing against her restraints, her face contorted in anguish, guttural screams escaping her belly every now and then. She was battling him. Seeking out his weaknesses and exploiting them. Ravaging the nuances of his procedure and turning them against each other. Destroying his machine from the inside out.

But she was suffering as a result. She was still attached to its central processor and everything she did to hinder its operation, she did to her own detriment.

But that didn't matter to her now. She would not be controlled.

She was warring against him.

And she was winning.

* * *

"Jack, I'm sorry. The order came from the President himself. It's out of my hands."

Jack sighed and scrubbed his hands across his face. "I'm keeping SG-1 for twenty-four more hours," he said at last.

"Jack," Landry sighed.

"Daniel found some ruins of some ancient thing that he assures me are _imperative_ to understanding the human race," he continued. "And since one SGC member was already compromised on this planet, I insist on keeping Teal'c and Mitchell as...bodyguards. For my own personal safety."

Landry smirked at the video transmission and chuckled to himself. "Well, then," he said, "by all means. Keep SG-1. But I expect the other teams back here in two hours."

"Absolutely. They were getting on my nerves anyway. O'Neill out."

"Jack," Landry said quickly.

"Yeah?"

"Time is relative."

Jack nodded, his teeth grimly set. "We'll find her."

"You'd better."

"We have to. The caterer'll be pissed if we cancel."

Landry smiled. "Good luck, General."

"Thanks, General."

* * *

"Your efforts are failing."

"I need more time."

"She is no longer responding to your methods."

"She is the perfect specimen."

"She is proving your incompetence."

"I need more time!"

"We cannot give you what you ask."

"Please--"

"You will destroy her and seek another."

"There is no other!"

"You will find one."

"She is unique. The only one of her kind in the universe. I must continue."

"We cannot allow it."

"One more day is all I ask."

"We _cannot_ allow it."

"But everything I've worked for--"

"Is to the glory of the Ori! Destroy her."

"...as you command."

"Hallowed are the Ori."

"...hallowed are the Ori."

* * *

His hand shook as it neared the console. The panel was green, the panel he needed to touch to wipe the human's memory and ease the life from her body--it was green. His finger hovered centimeters above it as it had for the past several minutes.

He looked at her.

Ivory skin covered in a fine sheen of perspiration. _(She was writhing like a snake.)_

Hair splayed across the table like a drape of golden silk. _(It had grown much longer.)_

Knuckles fisted white. _(She would not let go.)_

Her palms crusted with blood. _(Her nails were sharper than he thought.)_

Her lips cracked and bleeding. _(She had bit them in anguish.)_

Bruises along her hips and thighs._ (She had pummeled them herself.)_

Her jaw working silently back and forth._ (She could not speak.)_

Screams tearing from deep within her throat. _(She could not help herself.)_

Her eyes. Open. _(She had never looked at him before.)_

He gasped and tumbled into them.

* * *

A light flashed.

-------

She saw the galaxy being born.

------

Her mind was quiet.

------

She felt birth pangs.

------

She listened for the wind.

------

She thought she could fly.

-----

She heard a star dying.

-----

She saw the wind.

-----

She was falling.

-----

She watched limbs sprout from her body.

------

She began to sing.

------

_She was free. _

* * *

Jack stared into the fire, his silence shrouding him like a thick, impregnable fog. Daniel handed him an MRE and he took it out of instinct. He had no appetite.

Her ring was in his breast pocket. It had taken months to find the perfect sapphire.

She was in his galaxy he knew.

She had yet to die.

"Are you not hungry, O'Neill?"

Jack didn't look up as Teal'c lowered himself to the ground beside him. "Nope."

"I, too, am having difficulty maintaining an appetite," Teal'c told him, an MRE hanging limply from his fingers. The pair sat in silence for a few minutes before Teal'c continued softly. "Colonel Carter is a strong warrior, O'Neill."

"I know."

"She is also a strong woman."

At this, Jack's head dropped, his chin a breath away from his chest. "Yeah," he muttered. "She is."

"I am confident she will return."

Jack looked at him, his eyes streaked with weariness. "What makes you say that?"

"The bond you share is unlike any I have ever encountered. You both have accomplished impossible tasks in order to return to each other." He paused and looked at Jack. "It is unlikely she would allow galaxies to stand between you for a protracted period of time."

Jack nodded and once again looked into the embers of the fire. "Yeah." He tossed the MRE aside and raked his fingers through his hair. He opened his mouth to speak, but sat up suddenly when he heard the breaking of nearby underbrush. On the other side of the fire, Daniel and Mitchell stopped conversing and looked up, Mitchell's hand already on the holster of his sidearm. Jack motioned for silence as he palmed his zat and listened.

Underbrush continued to snap, and Jack deduced that it was a wild animal drawn to their campfire. As the noise crept closer to them, he stood, Teal'c flanking him, zat ready to protect their campsite.

And then Jack's eyes widened and the zat fell from his fingers.

"Oh my god," he heard Daniel mutter.

* * *

Covered in bruises and burns, she stood unabashedly naked in the moonlight. Her hair tangled to the middle of her back, twigs and leaves twined in the strands. She gazed at the men in turn, her head cocking to one side as her eyes met Jack's. She took a step towards him, her hand outstretched.

"Is it you?" she asked, her voice like a breeze and just as timid.

He nodded, unable to speak, and grabbed the blanket Mitchell handed him. Unfurling it, he stepped towards her, blocking her body from view, and wrapped it around her shoulders. She watched him, her eyes never wavering from his face, and when he had covered her nakedness, she reached up and lightly traced his features.

"I dreamt of you," she whispered, her palm like ice against his cheek.

Jack took her hand from his face and pressed his lips to her fingers. "Do you know who I am?" he asked her softly, his eyes wavering slightly.

"You're the one who loves me," she murmured.

Jack smiled. "That's right. Do you know my name?"

She went silent then and her eyes slowly faded to gray. Snatching her hand away from him, she took an unsteady step backwards, her face twisted horribly in anguish. Her jaw worked up and down, but no words came. Suddenly, she was staring at him her arms stretched out in front of her, her shoulders caving in on themselves causing the blanket to drop from her body, tears welling in her eyes. A cry hurled from her throat and she crumpled to her knees, slamming the heels of her hands into her temples over and over again. She cowered beneath the blanket, sounds rushing from between her lips, each disconnected and discordant. He took a step towards her and a low, guttural scream tore from her throat as she crawled away from him.

The sounds took over again.

"Jack," Daniel muttered, suddenly appearing at his side. "She's speaking Ancient."

Jack frowned, only half-listening to his friend. "What?"

"At least, I think she is. If so, it's a dialect I haven't encountered before, but some of the words are familiar."

"Great," he said, his tone a bit more bitter than he intended. "Grab the sedative from the med kit and then help Mitchell and Teal'c break down the camp. I want to be through the stargate in half and hour."

Daniel nodded and in a few seconds laid the syringe in his hand. Sam still lay in a heap on the ground, but the strange words had stopped gushing from her mouth.

"Sam?" he said tentatively, squatting a scant three feet from her. "Sam, it's me."

She turned to look at him, her cheeks pale and shimmering with tears. A choked sob escaped her and her body shuddered with its heft. She watched him for several moments, her eyes shifting, tearing, her chest heaving and her body growing more and more tense as the seconds elapsed. Finally, her eyes were wide and frantic as she looked from him to the skies overhead.

"Thestus," she muttered, pointing to a group of stars above them. "Heroletus," she whispered, pointing to the right of Thestus. "Triastas, Ariadne, Jodastus, Maianas, Plesti," she stammered, the names running together as she hurried through the star patterns. He listened as she named every constellation overhead before beginning to list the names and point out the locations of the stars and planets.

He plucked a sprig of a small flowering plant next to him and offered it to her, running the blossom along her arm to get her attention. She started at the contact, but relaxed when she saw the plant.

"Moonflower," she whispered and hesitantly plucked the sprig from his fingers. "Rare, medicinal, blooms only under the moon, annual, poisonous if used incorrectly, miraculous if prepared correctly."

Jack's eyes narrowed. "Do you know how to prepare it correctly?"

She nodded and looked back up at the sky, the tear stains on her cheeks glimmering under the moonlight. "Siaspys," she said, pointing to a bright spot in the sky. "Edge of this galaxy. Northernmost--"

"Sam," Jack said softly. She stopped speaking, but did not look at him. "Do you know who you are?"

She considered his question a moment before turning to him. "I'm the one who loves you," she whispered.

* * *

TBC.

_(Reviews: The Breakfast of Happy and Prolific Muses!) _


	2. Chapter 2

_See chapter one for disclaimer._

_Somehow the end of this chapter got hacked off the first time around. Cyber mice, perhaps?_

_Note: Jacob and Selmak are still alive in my universe. They survived through the sheer force of their awesomeness. And because I'm still very much in denial._

* * *

** My Andromeda**

**Chapter Two**

**by Mabyn**

* * *

"I want to see the sky," she whispered to him, her fingers clenching and releasing the blanket covering her knees. "I need to see the sky." 

Resisting the urge to hold her or take her hand proved more difficult with each second they spent in the infirmary. "Soon," he told her, watching her eyes jet from person to person and back again. He wasn't sure she heard him or if she was even paying attention. He glanced over his shoulder at Doctor Lam who was currently engaged in a deep, lengthy conversation with a medical technician. He prayed the result of their talk would be a remedy for Sam's condition.

"I know him," she mumbled, her eyes on Daniel.

"Yes," he said. "You do."

"He's my brother." The words were almost a breath. Then her eyes widened and a string of sounds he didn't recognized coursed softly from her lips. She buried her face in her knees and rocked steadily back and forth, back and forth, her words beginning to come faster, their volume increasing.

"Sam," he said sharply and, without thinking, grabbed her arm.

She screamed at the contact and leapt from the bed, wrenching her arm away from him. Several nurses surrounded her and the foreign words became more rapid, like water pouring from her tongue. One of them advanced towards her, his palms out, his voice soothing.

But she could not hear him.

Sam hurdled the next bed and spun to overturn it, the metal frame crashing to the ground, sending the mattress and pillows flying. Words still steadily streaming from her mouth, she grabbed one of the legs of the bed frame and drug it towards her until it touched the wall. Immediately ducking down behind her makeshift barrier, she clasped her knees to her chest and began rocking again. Soon tears spilled down her cheeks and her breaths came in ragged gasps, but through it all the words kept coming, ripped from her throat like a deluge she was powerless to stop.

Doctor Lam readied a sedative and moved towards her patient, but Daniel grabbed her arm. "Wait," he told her, his eyes narrowed as he struggled to keep up with Sam's words.

Crouching by the edge of Sam's barrier, Jack looked up at Daniel. "You understand any of this?"

Daniel motioned for his silence and grabbed a pen and paper from a nearby table. He began transcribing what he could and asked Teal'c to retrieve his tape recorder from his office.

"Daniel?" Jack intoned when he noticed Sam's distress mounting. Tears coursed down her cheeks and her frail body visibly trembled before him.

"Wait," Daniel told him, his pen still flying across the page.

A shuddering keen ripped from Sam's throat then and before anyone could stop her, she dug her fingernails into her scalp and drew them heavily down her face.

"Sam!" Jack cried and launched himself at her, but not before she had attacked her scalp again. Steeling himself against her screaming and bucking, he grabbed her wrists in one hand and wrapped his free arm around her waist. Doctor Lam was beside him in an instant, sedative in hand.

Slowly, as the sedative began to take effect, she stopped struggling against him, though Jack could tell she was fighting to remain conscious. "It's all right," he whispered soothingly to her. "You'll just be asleep for a little while."

"Don't want to sleep," she choked out. "I want to--see the stars."

"Tell me Earth's constellations," he murmured, running his thumb across the back of her hand. "What are they?"

"Perseus," she whispered, her body immediately relaxing in his arms. "Pegasus, Andromeda, Sagittarius, Aquarius, Cassiopeia, Cygnus, Gemini, Draco." She continued until she had named every star pattern in Earth's sky before succumbing to the sedative and falling asleep in his arms.

* * *

"I think I know why she's unstable," Dr. Lam said. "She's currently using one hundred twenty percent of her brain capacity." 

Jack's eyes widened immediately. "Excuse me? A hundred _twenty_ percent?"

"How's that possible?" Daniel asked.

Dr. Lam shook her head. "No idea, but that's what her CAT, PET and MEG scans are telling us."

"MEG scans?" Jack asked.

"New type of brain scan," Dr. Lam told him. "Provides the most accurate resolution of the timing of nerve cell activity. We had to cut the test short because the machine couldn't handle her results."

"So," General Landry drawled. "What you're telling us is..."

"Is that she is just barely coping with extraordinary activity in her brain. Far as I can tell, her unstable periods are like a release valve. They relieve some of the pressure and allow her her more coherent moments."

"I wouldn't necessarily call them coherent," Jack muttered.

_"Relatively_ coherent," Dr. Lam conceded. "Also, her neurotransmitters were a mess. Norepinephrine, serotonin, dopamine--the levels were all over the place. I've put her on medication to try and rectify the imbalances. Hopefully that'll clear her head a little more and give her more...relative coherency."

"Straight up coherency would be nice," Jack told her. "But, you know, whatever you can manage."

Dr. Lam smirked at Jack and then looked to Landry. "I'm hesitant to do anymore for her, sir. Fact is, I don't really know what's going on. I've called in a few specialists, but I doubt they'll be able to tell us any more than we already know."

"Did you compare her results to Jack's when he had the repository of the Anc--" Daniel began.

"Downloaded into his brain," Dr. Lam finished, sighing. "Yeah, I did. While the two situations are comparable, they're not identical."

Daniel frowned. "How so?"

"As a whole, Colonel Carter's brain is way more active and different sections of her brain are being stimulated." Lam shook her head. "That's all I could tell, but it's enough to doubt the likelihood of the same remedy having the same effect on her."

"Still, General," Daniel said. "I think it's imperative we contact the Asgard immediately. They'll probably be able to shed some more light on this situation."

Landry nodded. "Do it."

"Hey," Jack called as Daniel headed for the steps to the control room. "You figure out any of that stuff she was saying?"

Daniel shook his head. "Not a whole lot. Some of the syllables are familiar, but their construction is unlike anything I've come across. Hopefully the Asgard will be able to help us out there, too."

"Little buggers better come through this time," Jack muttered. Then, looking to Lam, he asked, "She still out?"

Lam nodded. "Sedated, yes. We restrained her as an added precaution. She did quite a bit of damage before, and I don't want to risk further incidents."

Jack sighed, the picture of Sam's face dripping with blood spilled by her own hands surfacing in his mind. "Yeah," he conceded. "Good call." He pushed himself heavily out of the chair, propelling himself towards the door. "I'll be in the infirmary," he called over his shoulder. "Let me know as soon as our little gray friends call back."

"Will do, Jack," Landry told him.

"Thanks," he mumbled, far too low for anyone to hear.

* * *

She was still sleeping when he arrived and for that he was thankful. Even on a good day he couldn't understand half of what came out of her mouth. Now, thanks to the Ori, he couldn't understand her at all. 

That wasn't true. He could understand her body language, her tone, the movement of her eyes. And that she remembered they loved each other comforted him, though he wasn't certain she fully understood the import of the sentiment.

She groaned and shifted in her sleep, her arms straining against the wrist cuffs.

_The wedding was a month away._

She began to fight against her restraints, her mind still subverted by the sedative.

_The ring was in his pocket._

Her eyes flickered open, her pupils dilated and her expression hazy.

_The sapphire was perfect._

"Jack," she mumbled, tugging vainly at cuffs around her wrists.

"I'm right here," he said, careful to keep his excitement in check. _She remembered his name._

"I can't move," she told him, her eyes wide and panicked. "Why can't I move?"

"You're all right," he murmured, gently cupping her cheek against his palm. He brushed her bangs out of her eyes, carefully avoiding the bandages that streaked her face, and smiled down at her. "You're in the infirmary at the SGC."

"No!" she cried, tears welling in her eyes as she continued to struggle. "Let me go," she pleaded, "Please, let me go..." She moaned, the sound erupting from deep inside her belly, as tears dripped from her eyes.

"Whoa, Sam," Jack soothed, his hands coming to both sides of her head as he forced her to look at him. A pang shot through him when he saw the full face of her terror. "You're in restraints because the doctor doesn't want you to hurt yourself again."

"I won't," she told him, her eyes wide. "I won't, I promise. Just get them off of me...please. Don't let anyone hurt me again."

He frowned and smoothed her hair. "I won't let anyone hurt you," he murmured. "But if I take the restraints off, you have to promise to stay here."

She nodded vehemently, a chocked sob escaping her throat.

Moving quickly, he unlatched the four restraints holding her down and was pleasantly surprised when she reached for him.

He smiled softly and eased himself onto the bed beside her. She immediately wrapped her arms around him as he settled in and pulled her legs closely to her chest. Resting his chin on the top of her head, he ran his fingers along her back to soothe the tremors coursing through her body.

"I know more than I should," she whispered to him. "More than anyone should. I don't know what they did to me."

"We've contacted the Asgard," he told her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Hopefully they'll know more about what's going on. Do you remember anything about what happened?"

She stopped then. Stopped trembling, speaking and even breathing. He quietly spoke her name after a moment, and was relieved when she drew a deep, shuddering breath.

"No," she told him. "Nothing that happened. I remember other things, though. Things I shouldn't remember." She paused and breathed deeply. "Things I've never done or seen, places I've never been, machines I've never made--but I know all of them. And I can't stop--" Her voice broke then and Jack pulled her tightly against him.

"My father's on Peridius," she whispered into his chest. "A planet on the edge of our galaxy."

Jack frowned. "How do you know that?"

"He's scouting it as a new base for the remaining Tok'ra. There's only sixty-eight of them left. They've been trying new technologies to synthetically increase their numbers, but they haven't met with any success. It will take them three months to relocate."

"It's been over six months since we last heard from the Tok'ra," he muttered, but she paid no attention.

"He won't be able to come for months," she whispered. "He misses me."

Pressing another kiss to her forehead, Jack unconsciously pulled Sam closer. She started at the increased pressure and then her eyes began to search his face. "I've been gone for ten days. You were in D.C. When Daniel contacted you. You abandoned your obligations in order to find me. They're questioning your dedication; several chiefs are conspiring against you. They want you out of the Air Force."

She looked away, her eyes raking across the infirmary. "Captain Caise's mother is in the hospital. She has ovarian cancer." She paused, her breath hitching in her throat. "She's going to die in the morning."

Jack's eyes narrowed. "Caise's mother?"

Sam shook her head. "Captain Caise."

"How?"

"Car accident."

Captain Caise glanced up and caught his eye. She issued him a friendly smile before returning to her duties. "We should tell her," he whispered.

"You believe me?"

He stopped. Not believing her had never occurred to him. "I trust you."

Her eyes glazed over, her body tensing in his arms. "But you don't believe me. You think I'm making it up. Why would I make it up?"

"Whoa," Jack soothed. "Calm down. I never said I don't believe you."

"You shouldn't," she muttered. "I don't believe me. It can't happen; it's impossible. The future isn't foreseeable, not decided until the very moment, there's too many variables, too much to take into consideration, atoms, molecules, forces no one can fathom compelling us into action and it's--"

He kissed her and she stilled. When he pulled back, he smiled. "Didn't see that comin', didja?"

She shook her head, her lips quirking in the semblance of a smile.

Absently, he stroked her cheek, dried tear stains tripping up his thumb. "How do you know these things you've told me?"

"I know more than I've told you," she said, her eyes distant, her mouth moving despite her pleading for it not to. "Much more. I can see everything and I shouldn't be able to."

Jack nodded. "All right, but how do you know?"

"I see them."

He frowned. "Like...like a movie?"

"Like stars."

"Movie stars."

She shook her head. "Constellations. Galaxies."

"Oh."

Sam's eyes fell and she began scratching lightly at her forearm. "You don't understand."

"I don't understand half of what you say most of the time," he said, clasping both her hands in his and eying the red marks on her arm from her nails. "But that doesn't mean I don't believe you." She nodded, her eyes averted. Softly, he said, "Landry needs to know."

"No!" she whispered fiercely, her pupils dilating, her body tensing. "He won't believe me. He'll think I'm crazy. They'll come for me."

"Who'll come for you?"

Tears lined her eyes as she muttered, "They'll hook me up to machines, tubes and wires and they won't let me be myself, they'll want to find out what happened to me, if they can duplicate it, you can't tell anyone. They'll--"

"Hey," he murmured, pulling her close. "Hey, now." He ran his hands over her back, his nose buried in her hair as her face was buried in the crook of his neck. He rocked her gently back and forth before asking, "Remember that night in Minnesota last summer? It was hot as hell, neither of us could sleep, we lost five pints of blood to mosquitoes?"

She nodded slowly against his shoulder. "We got ice cream."

He grinned. She would remember that. "And a gallon of bug spray. We stayed up all night together. On a blanket in the bed of my truck, looking at the stars."

"Perseus is your favorite," she whispered. "He protects us."

"That's right." He paused and kissed her head. "Do you remember what else I said?"

Her body shuddered as she drew in a deep breath; her fingers twined into her hair and pressed against her scalp. "You—you would give me your piece of the universe," she whispered at last. "If you could."

He hugged her closer a moment before pulling back to find her eyes. She wouldn't look at him. "Yeah," he murmured, crooking his finger under her chin. He read the fear written across her face and then slowly pulled a velvet box from his pocket. Opening it, he said, "I did the best I could."

She gasped when she saw the ring—a brilliant sapphire surrounded by nine small jet stones and diamonds. Plucking it from the case, he showed her the band. She smiled, tears welling in her eyes.

"Perseus," she murmured, gently brushing her finger across the gems meticulously placed on the side of the band. Gingerly, she lifted the ring from his fingers and turned it over. She gasped. "Andromeda," she whispered, tears finally dripping from her eyes as saw the constellation's mimic.

He smiled at her awe and, after a moment, took the ring from her and then took her left hand in his. "I love you," he told her as he slipped the ring onto her fourth finger. "And if you ever start to doubt that, you look at this," he said, brushing his thumb across the sapphire. "You not only have my universe, you _are_ my universe. So long as I can stop it, I'm not letting anyone or anything hurt you—_ever_. You got that?"

Sam nodded, tears still trailing down her cheeks, and leaned in to kiss him. "I love you," she said, her eyes flickering to the ring on her finger. "It's beautiful."

"You're beautiful," he told her and smiled when she blushed. He sobered then. "I won't let them take you anywhere, all right?" She sniffed and nodded. He kissed her forehead quickly before easing himself off of the bed. "I'm gonna go have a talk with Landry and then we'll--"

He stopped as his feet hit the ground and bent his knees gently. "Whoa," he muttered, bending deeper into the stretch. There was no pain, no stiffness, and for the first time in a very long time, his knees didn't crack. He looked up at Sam. She eyed him warily. "What...?"

"Don't tell him that part," she whispered. "Not yet."

He shook his head, a small smile dancing on his lips. "I won't." Jack bent his knees again. "God, I feel thirty again." He winked at her when she laughed softly, relieved, and then turned back towards the door.

"Jack," she called, her voice quivering slightly. He looked at her over his shoulder, his eyebrows frowning at her sudden hesitance.

Her eyes scanned the walls, her nails dug into her arm. She drew a shuddering breath before pegging him with hard, tearful stare. "The Ori will be here in five days."

"She what?"

"Told me the Ori are coming in five days, probably to grace us with galactic devastation." Jack pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "We should begin sending selected personnel to the alpha site stat."

"Yeah, go back to the part where Sam's a fortune teller," Daniel said, his brows furrowed. "'Cause I'm pretty sure she knows the impossibility of seeing the future."

Jack nodded, a sigh escaping his lips. "She said that, yeah. Doesn't mean she isn't right."

"About which part?" Daniel asked. "I don't think--"

"Should we not heed Colonel Carter's warning?" Teal'c interjected. "Even if she is in error--"

"Yeah, I can count the times _that's_ happened on one hand," Mitchell muttered, earning him a slight smile from Jack.

Teal'c nodded. "Indeed, but even if she is, would it not behoove us to take such protective measures?"

"I agree," Daniel said. "I'm just not sure Sam's, you know...all there. She's been through a lot the past week and a half. I know I'd be disoriented to say the least."

After a moment's hesitation, Jack said softly, "She said some other stuff, too."

General Landry eyebrows shot up. "Like?"

Jack raked his fingers through his hair. "She knows where her father is. What the Tok'ra are up to. They're scouting for a new base on the edge of the galaxy in case anyone's wondering."

"We haven't heard from the Tok'ra--" Landry began.

"I know!" The words shot from Jack's mouth before he could stop them. He looked at Landry in apology as he rose from his chair and began pacing. "I know it could be a long shot, but I think it's vital we trust her on this."

"I don't _not_ trust her, Jack," Landry said, leaning forward in his chair. "But how do I explain a sudden need to evacuate key personnel to the alpha site without certain parties getting way too interested in Colonel Carter's condition?"

Jack stopped and turned towards the general, surprised. He hadn't been expecting that explanation for his hesitance. The knowledge was heartening.

"I kept my report vague just for that reason," Mitchell muttered. "She doesn't need that kind of attention, not right now."

Jack nodded. "She's worried about that," he told them. "But she's willing to take the risk."

"We won't let them take her," Daniel said, his eyes stonily set. "There's gotta be something we can do."

"Perhaps we can convince them her participation in our counterstrike is of the utmost importance," Teal'c said. "After we have succeeded in foiling the Ori's attempts, we may proceed from there."

"I like the optimism, Teal'c," Mitchell sighed, scrubbing his hands across his face. "But we don't have any weapons able to take down one measly Prior let alone a whole armada of his supervisors."

Teal'c's eyebrow inched upwards. "Perhaps Colonel Carter knows of a weapon that may be of use to us."

Jack shook his head. "She would've said something."

They all stopped short when Walter appeared in the stairwell. "Excuse me, sir," he said to Landry. "There's a call for you from Doctor Lam."

"Thanks, Seargent," Landry said, rising from his chair. "I'll take it in my office." As he walked towards his office doorway, he called over his shoulder, "Keep talkin'. Fill me in when I get back."

They were silent a moment after Landry had gone, though Jack was certain he could hear the clatter of the other men's thoughts rumble through the room. He picked at a speck of lint on his shirt; his eyes flickered towards Landry's office, the man deep in conversation, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Any word from the Asgard?" Mitchell asked, twirling in his chair to face Daniel.

"Nope," Daniel sighed. "Though it has only been twelve hours, if that. Generally takes them days to get back to us."

"If they ever do," Jack mumbled, his head snapping up as General Landry scuttled into the room, his mood decidedly lighter than it had been.

"Gentlemen, we're about to have a visitor with some very good news," he told them once again retaking his seat.

Jack's eyes widened. "She doesn't," he said, a small smile on his lips. "Why didn't she say anything?"

"I needed to make sure you'd believe me," Sam murmured from the stairwell, Captain Caise at her elbow. Sam's lips fluttered, and she grasped the captain's hand in hers as hushed sounds poured from her tongue.

"Breathe, Colonel," Captain Caise soothed, her hand running in circles around the woman's back. "Focus, like we talked about."

Sam's eyes snapped up, locking onto Jack's with startling speed. He was crossing the room towards her before he thought to move, his hands soon cupping either side of her neck as her eyes devoured his. He listened as faint words—a variation of Ancient, he now knew—tumbled from her, the syllables disappearing soon after they reached his ears.

"It's all right, honey," he whispered to her, fighting the urge to hold her as tears formed in her eyes. "Stay with me."

She nodded as several tears spilled down her cheeks. He could see the war behind her eyes, a faint glimmer of his Sam still locked within—gated, hiding. After several long moments, she gasped and Jack saw something just behind her irises click into place. She sighed and her body relaxed.

"Amata si," she muttered, her hands brushing his cheeks.

He smiled. "That I got. I love you, too." She smiled back at him—a small smile, a hint of what her smiles used to be, but a smile nonetheless. "So," he drawled, escorting her to the briefing table. "You know of any big, honkin' space guns we can use to take out some really, really evil bad guys?"

She nodded and gratefully sank into the chair he offered her. Daniel felt a pang shoot through him as he observed his friend's demeanor. Though her hair was neatly brushed and tied at her neck, it had lost its luster. Her eyes lacked their usual gleam and seemed constantly searching. Her shoulders bowed towards her chest; her hands were flighty birds attached at the wrist. And her forehead and cheeks were still bandaged. From what Lam said, the damage had been surprisingly severe considering how the wounds were inflicted. He swallowed with difficulty and sat up to the briefing table when Sam drew a sharp, shallow breath.

"Orat astra procaesum," she said, her palms pressing against her eyes. "Postulatam nus ut quaetae ex vicisa."

"Whoa," Daniel said, uncapping his pen and readying it over the paper. "Say that again."

"Orat astra procaesum," she repeated softly, her lips quivering. Jack gripped her knee under the table; her hand immediately found his and squeezed his fingers together.

"Astra, stars," Daniel said, scribbling on his pad. "Got one." He consulted his notes and frowned. "Orat?"

Letters and images flashed through Sam's mind. A child being born, covered in blood and uterine fluid, wailing. A casket being lowered into the ground. White petals falling from the sky like rain. Her eyes staring back at her from behind a black veil.

"Ora," she said at last, her shoulders shaking. "Ora astra procul."

Daniel straightened. "At the edge of the stars," he said immediately.

She nodded. "Postulatam nus ut quaetae ex vicisa."

"You're gonna have to help me out again, Sam," Daniel told her, his voice soft. "I know it's hard, but try. I have no other frame of reference."

A woman was being raped and tortured while her children cowered in a nearby corner, their father's body, bloodied and lifeless, before them.

"Postule..." she whispered, her hands clutching her head. "Postule."

"Need or require."

A low keen pealed from her throat. Somewhere in the galaxy a star was being born. In its birth, five other worlds died. She heard them screaming.

"Quaero," she managed faintly. "Quaero ex temporis."

"To seek out of or beyond time," Daniel muttered, gently grasping her shoulder. "We need or request to seek beyond time."

A low sob escaped her as she nodded. "Etiam." Jack gripped her fingers reassuringly under the table. "Etiam..."

"So the weapon or device we need is..." Daniel trailed off and looked down at the paper in front of him. "...beyond time."

"Great," Mitchell mumbled. "For a minute there I thought this was going to be difficult."

"Does this place have a gate address, Colonel Carter?" Teal'c asked softly, leaning forward slightly in his seat.

Sam nodded. "Urbaliena per Temporasa."

"Urbaliena...per...Temporasa..." Daniel muttered, jotting the words down on his tablet. He stopped suddenly and frowned. "Urbaliena per Temporasa. That's nine, if I'm counting correctly." He looked to Sam. "Am I? There are only eight chevrons on the gate."

Again, she nodded. "Ultre temporis."

"How's that possible?" he asked, his brow furrowed, his eyes bewildered. "We can't even dial the eighth chevron without overloading the circuits."

"Ego validus," she whispered, looking down at her hands.

"Non-Ancient speaking people in the room, Jackson," Mitchell said, tapping the arm of Daniel's chair.

"Right, uh, there's nine sounds or syllables in 'Urbaliena per Temporasa' and there's only eight chevrons--"

Jack nodded. "Yeah, got that part."

"So," Daniel continued, "we have no conventional way of dialing this world." He paused and eyed Sam concernedly. "However, Sam says she'll be able to establish a connection."

"How is that possible, Colonel Carter?" Teal'c asked, turning towards her.

She shook her head to clear it and raked her fingernails through her hair, pulling several strands out of the knot at her neck. Drawing her legs to her chest, she whispered, "Mens imperium."

Jack's gaze shot to Daniel who was observing Sam through slitted lids. "The mind controls," he said.

Jack frowned. "What's that mean?"

"I have no idea."

* * *

Jack tried not to pace, but he couldn't help it. He watched Sam as her fingers blurred over the keyboard of the control room's main computer, saw the sweat beading at her temple. She wasn't warm, he knew. Her temperature had been at least five degrees below normal since her return. The perspiration silently testified to her heightened awareness, her stress level. 

Every time they touched, he felt caged, as if some monster was scratching at the threshold of his skull, demanding access and fuming at his denial. The monster was an echo, he thought, an echo of Sam's visions, her galaxies and constellations, the worlds now witnessed inside her mind. He could hardly tolerate the echoes; he was amazed she could bear the full force of their presence.

But there was a lot about her that amazed him.

The incessant clacking of keys stopped then as Sam activated the dialing sequence. He followed her down to the embarkation room where the rest of SG-1, SG-4 and Captain Caise were waiting for them.

But she didn't stop when she reached the teams.

The fifth chevron locked.

She stepped onto the ramp and Jack's eyes widened. "Sam?" he called. "What are you doing?"

The sixth chevron locked.

She reached the middle of the ramp and planted her feet, her arms dangling by her sides.

"Sam!" Jack cried again, his mounting panic apparent in his voice. "Get the hell back here!"

The seventh chevron locked.

He heard Daniel, Teal'c and Mitchell calling out to her, as well, and General Landry said something over the speakers he could not decipher. Dropping his P-90, he lunged towards her--

--only to be stopped.

He could not move. He saw her eyes—_there were galaxies in her eyes._

The eighth chevron locked.

The gate surged towards the ninth glyph and Sam stared straight ahead, unseeing, yet seeing seeing everything. A blue glow suffused her hands and slowly licked up her arms as the gate engaged.

_I love you, _he heard her say.

She was engulfed by the vortex.

Her name wrenched from his throat.

* * *

_Please feed the muse bunnies. Thank you. :) _


	3. Chapter 3

_See chapter one for disclaimer._

_A/N: Chapter has been lengthened. Huge thank yous to those of you who have responded, especially the error-catchers. Please continue! Errors will (eventually) be corrected; feedback will always be joyfully received. :)_

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter Three**

**by Mabyn**_  
_

* * *

Energy pulsed around her, cracked at her splayed fingertips, whiplashed through her skin. She breathed it like oxygen, drew it in through her pores, drank of it heavily like wine.

She was the eye of this hurricane.

A ball of pure blue light grew steadily inside of her. She could taste it, feel it licking her organs, bathing them, restoring her balance and sustaining her. A smile waved across her lips as she danced in this ecstatic downpour of pure power. The images made sense now, the sounds, the letters, the words―all of it. She knew their purpose, why she saw them and how.

She realized she knew everything.

Her belly began quivering―the energy wasn't meant to be pent up this long. But it only seemed like seconds since she and it had become one. She resisted letting it go, this unnameable bliss, this assurance of purpose. She held on, one more moment―just _one more moment._

And then it came pouring out of her like steam, enveloping the Stargate in a thin blue haze, its glimmer outshining that of the event horizon. Her eyes opened; she saw past the horizon to the world beyond it, a world untouched by time. Reaching out her hand, she stroked the horizon with gentle fingertips. She smiled as it leapt at her touch and embraced her skin; it knew her, she thought. It knew her and it was delighted to see her again. She laughed softly, her joy like a child's, and embraced the horizon with open arms.

--

Jack's strangled cry ripped through the gateroom. SG's 1 and 4 and Captain Caise stood staring at Sam's last location, now totally enveloped by the unstable vortex; everyone was postured, ready to leap to her defense. Jack's arms were thrown behind him, his legs bent and prepped to run.

None of them moved. Thoughts of helping the woman on the ramp had fled; the synapses that had fired, preparing the muscles for movement, had forgotten its message. The signal had died halfway back to the brain. The vortex still trembled--but now it was not trembling at all. It had smoothed over, an ever-shifting cloud of light and power gleaming, leaping, dancing around Sam's upstretched arms.

She looked euphoric, her head thrown back, all signs of exhaustion gone, her fingers gently splayed and reaching towards the heavens. She and the vortex were dancing.

She and the vortex were one.

Slowly, the cloud shifted, like a breeze had changed, and swelled over the ridge of the Stargate, encompassing it in soft tendrils of light. The horizon shuddered and the lit chevrons turned dusky blue. Her laugh skipped around the room.

And then she was gone.

The mystical quality that had permeated the gateroom evaporated immediately. Jack's arms grew heavy and flopped to his sides. His eyes still on the active wormhole, he stooped to retrieve his P-90. Around him, the other men were regaining their bearings, mumbling softly to themselves or others.

"What just happened?" Mitchell asked, righting his pack. "Did she just--"

"I think we should follow her," Daniel said quickly. "Now. Before the wormhole loses integrity."

Jack nodded, unable to form coherent thoughts let alone sentences. He glanced over his shoulder at Landry, who nodded his approval. Silently, he shouldered his pack and gestured his team through the horizon.

--

"I have one rule," Jack called as he exited the wormhole. "Just one, one little rule." He stopped next to Sam and turned her to face him. "_No dying. _ A subset of said rule that should be apparent―and I stress _should be apparent--_is that if you're going to do anything, _anything at all_ that looks like it could maybe, possibly be in violation of said rule, _tell me _lest I have a heart attack. Got it?"

She had the decency to look slightly abashed, and saluted him.

"Little brat," he mumbled as rest of SG-1 ambled towards them. But he couldn't help smiling at her; her face still shone from powering the Stargate.

"Quite the place," Mitchell said, shielding his eyes from the late afternoon sun. "I'd live here."

"Yeah," Daniel intoned, his jaw lax as he surveyed the land surrounded them. "God, look at this..."

Sam smiled at his awe and, though a part of her shared his thrill at the purity of Temporasa, a larger part of her rejoiced at her homecoming. Though she physically had never set foot on this planet before, her heart knew it intimately. She had run barefoot through the fields of Locapacis and scaled Monveras to gaze upon the distant pools of Profus Infinitam Lux. Yes, she knew this place. This was the land of her ancestors, the land of her legacy.

She turned as she felt Captain Caise's hesitant approach. "Sir?" she said, addressing Jack. "I need to make sure Colonel Carter is--"

"Yep," Jack replied, hopping out of her way. "Have at her."

Sam stood patiently as Captain Caise briefly surveyed her for trauma, content for the moment to breath deeply of the sun's heavy scent on the breezes. Losing herself in the warmth of the setting sun, she was caught off-guard when Caise gasped.

"Oh my god," the captain breathed. One of Sam's bandages was peeled away from her forehead, revealing, not healing wounds, but unblemished skin. Carefully and with unsettled eyes, Caise peeled away the remaining bandages, her eyes widening as more of Sam's skin was uncovered, every inch of it sound and intact.

Her gaze fiercely anchored to the ground, Sam felt the eyes of her companions sweeping her face, heard the unasked questions ring clearly in her head and saw their feet scuffling in for a closer look.

"Guess we don't need to worry about that anymore, ay?" Jack said, pulling an antibacterial towlette out of the medkit and gently wiping the remaining adhesive off her face. "This stuff sucks," he told her softly.

"Gratas," she whispered as the small crowd around them dispersed.

He smiled. "No problem."

Screams filled her head―women screaming for their children, children screaming for the pain to end, men screaming for the chaos to cease. Burning, she smelled fire, tasted ashes, smoke seared her lungs, filled her nostrils. Her eyes overflowed with tears.

_Sam._

His face was set, his eyes milky white to match his skin. He wore a hooded robe. A staff gripped in his hand. _"You are a child of the Ori."_

_Sam, honey._

Clothes burnt off her body. Skin charred, peeled. Flames licked her skin.

_It's Jack._

Life seeped out of the cosmos. A wound dripping blood, never to congeal, seeping. Seeping.

_Come back to me._

She was the only one who knew.

_Please, honey._

The only one able to stop it.

Awareness trickled back to her. Brown eyes. She knew those eyes. Jack.

"Carus," she whispered, reaching for him.

"Beloved," Daniel muttered to Jack. He smiled at her in reassurance and then retreated a few steps, giving them what little privacy he could.

"I'm here," Jack told her, taking her hand in his and gathering her in his lap. She had apparently collapsed; she wasn't surprised. But they must begin their trek; the universe was dying. After allowing herself a few moments to drink in the comfort afforded by Jack's embrace, she began to rise.

"You sure you're ready to go?" he asked her. "We can take a few more--"

She shook her head. "Nula. Porroi via nos praecessa qua haud tempora ut sileo."

"The 'nula' I got," he told her, smiling slightly. She didn't return it.

"Insista," she murmured, the wind carrying the exhortation. "Insista mihi." She turned and began walking through the deep grasses, her palms open to skim the warm blades. Jack fell in behind her.

"You, uh, you know where you're goin', right?" Mitchell called to her, but she didn't answer. To Daniel, he muttered, "You see a path? I don't see a path."

"I don't think there is one," he replied, scanning the horizon. "I think 'Urbaliena per Temporasa' means city foreign to time, excluded from time, something like that. From what I know of Ancient—given this isn't _exactly_ Ancient--"

"Right," Mitchell said.

"Some sort of derivation, right. Well, 'Praclarush Taonas' means 'lost in fire,' and the world was literally lost in fire, so I'm assuming that 'city excluded from time' is meant literally." Daniel shrugged. "I'm just guessing."

"It's a good guess," Mitchell assured him. "Especially after that funky light thing Carter did back home. 'Spose that was time being...however it is time is...when it's not been to a world for...however long it's not been...here?"

Daniel looked at him askance. "Was that a sentence?"

"I don't think so, no."

"K. Just checking."

"I believe what we experienced," Teal'c began, "was Colonel Carter channeling the immense energy of the unstable subspace field created by a newly active wormhole. Her recently acquired abilities allowed this channeling to include aspects of the light spectrum visible to the human eye."

Mitchell and Daniel stopped and watch Teal'c saunter past, a slight smirk apparent on his lips.

"Yeah," Mitchell called to him. "That was my next guess."

--

"Your faith is waning."

He spun and fell straight into the face of his god. The ground lurched into focus as he prostrated himself at the Ori's feet. "Forgive me, my lord," he managed. "I do not know--"

"You allowed the woman to live."

His chest heaved. He could not breathe. "...yes."

"You doubt the promises of Origin."

"No, my lord," he assured him. "I am dedicated to the teachings."

"Then it is our will you doubt."

"No!" he all but shouted. "No, my lord, never! Your will is pure and good, and everything--"

"Then why does the woman yet live?"

He trembled, his nostrils caked with dust. His nails entrenched in the soil, he whispered, "I could not kill her."

The intervening pause was unlike any he had ever experienced before. Seconds melded to minutes, hours, days―he felt age wearing his bones and muscles, heard his ligaments snapping under the strain of too many years. A whimper escaped his lips. Certainly, he was about to die.

"It is our will she die."

_Then why do you not kill her? _He thought vaguely, immediately cowering before his master. Questioning, searching―these were forbidden to the followers of Origin.

But his master did nothing. His eyes―smoldering coals burnt blue―his eyes seared into his tunic, through his flesh, into his very heart...but they always did that. Why was his arrogance not punished? Why did they not kill him when he refused to kill the woman?

"It is our will you kill her."

* * *

_Please feed the muse bunnies!  
_


	4. Chapter 4

_See chapter one for disclaimer._

_1) If you haven't already, please read the update (posted 10/5ish) of chapter three. Chapter five will be a mite confusing if you haven't.  
_

_2) The addition to this chapter starts about midway down the page. _

_3) Thank you all for your kind and encouraging words. I really do appreciate them.  
_

_4) On with the story!  
_

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter 4**

**by Mabyn**

* * *

"Um, Sam? Honey? You sure about this?" 

Sam smiled and continued walking towards the herd of wild ferra ahead of them. They knew who she was, and several of them began walking towards her, their ears pricked in greeting.

"Abysus, vetus una, Forta," _(Hello, old one, Forta.) _she murmured as the herd's matriarch ambled towards her, the animal's pearl white coat glistening in the setting sun.

_Expecta, santi. (Welcome, sister.) _The words tumbled through Sam's mind as Forta breathed a blessing to her. The ferra at her flanks followed suit; lavender and ginger surrounded Sam, her lungs pleasantly heavy with the scents. _Nos ad exspa,_ _(We have been waiting.) _Forta told her.

"Itineris diutius quam nos sententia," _(The journey took longer than anticipated.)_ Sam apologized and gently stroked the animal's muzzle.

_Sempa facie, (They always do.) _ the ferra hummed and Sam heard her smile. Glancing behind her, Forta chuckled. _Insolitus bestia insisto vos. _ _(Strange animals follow you.)_

Smiling, Sam turned to see her companions stopped about two hundred feet short of where she and Una stood.

_Do we scare them?_ Forta asked, smiling. _We can be terrifying._

Sam shook her head. "They are uncertain." Her face sobered then and, turning from her companions, Sam gazed into Forta's unblinking eye. "You know why I have come."

_Of course_, Forta said. _It's the only reason you would come. We have missed you and dreaded your coming, both._

Averting her eyes to the distant peaks of Monveras, Sam muttered, "Some of you may die."

Forta stood proudly. _The ferra are warriors. We are prepared to fight. And die if necessary―though I hope it does not come to that._

Brown eyes stared back at her from behind mesh cages, terror and death weighing heavily on the air. Animals screamed, cried. She smelled fresh blood and urine. She tasted fear.

Soothing breath cascaded down Sam's face while a velvet muzzle filled her palm. Through her tears, Forta's form came into focus, warmth radiating from her body. Sam melted into it, grateful for the comfort as the image of the caged animals faded.

"I see more than I should," Sam confided, tears springing to her eyes once more. "So much more." Breath hitched in her throat, her chest seized. "I'm breaking," she whispered.

_No, _Forta insisted, pawing at the ground. _ You are not breaking; the universe is screaming and you are the only one who can hear it._ The ferra paused and looked towards the distant peaks, her mane rippling in a sudden breeze. _The cosmos has been ill from this beginning. It aches for restoration, for the purity it once knew. _

Sam gripped Forta's body closer to her own, wishing she could crawl into the creature's center and surround herself with the ferra's peace.

_You are troubled._

Sam sighed. "The universe is..."

_Infinite._

"And I'm not."

She felt Forta smile. _You will be._ The ferra regarded Sam's companions. _They are weary. You require rest._

Sam shook her head. "We haven't the time."

_My dear sister, _Forta chuckled, her tail swishing through the air. _Time does not rule this world as it does yours. You have all the time you require._

"They're coming for me," Sam whispered, her eyes shut against the mental images flashing through her head. _War. Avarice. Lust. Greed. Coming for her._

_Yes, _Forta affirmed, _and time will bring them. But it has not brought them yet. _She gently nudged Sam towards SG's 1 and 4. _Go. Rest. We will be here. Watching._

* * *

"What's she doing?" Daniel asked, squinting into the glaring sun. 

"I believe she is talking to a horse," Teal'c said.

"_That's_ a horse?" Mitchell gaped, his eyes wide.

"A very large horse," Teal'c confirmed.

Daniel nodded. "With hooves as big as my head."

"Ears bigger than my feet," Mitchell added.

"Keeps the lawn mowed," Jack said, surveying the animals in the valley, their coats a pastiche of hues against the mountainside. "No nasty notes from the neighbors. That's a plus."

"Two, actually," Mitchell told him, his eyes still wide as they leapt from one ferra to the next. "God," he hissed. "Can you imagine the saddle sores? Youch."

"Somehow I doubt they're ridden," Daniel said, a slight frown at his lips. "Though I'd be more than happy to watch you try."

Mitchell smirked. "Funny man."

Jack's eyes narrowed as he watched his fiancé lean heavily against the chest of one of the creatures. While he usually trusted her to keep herself safe, her recent abduction and subsequent condition had left him more cautious than normal where she was concerned.

He blinked quickly twice. Three times. He could hear them. Softly, gritty, as if they spoke through a tunnel through sand, but he _could_ hear them. Echoes, he caught the echoes, the vibrations of their speech. Dull images, fractured syllables splashed through his mind.

Caged animals. Distant sounds, vague images―but caged animals.

Then it was gone. It lapsed so quickly he almost thought he had imagined it, but then he watched as Sam pressed herself tighter against the animal, her eyes tightly shut, as if trying to banish a memory.

He had seen some of what she had. But how, he didn't know.

She began walking away from him then and he felt his heart in his throat. She paused and turned.

"Insista," she called, her eyes matched to his. He needed no translation; it was clearly written in her eyes.

He followed her.

* * *

The phone rang for the twelfth time in the past forty-five minutes. 

"Jesus Christ," Landry muttered, clashing his coffee cup on his desk, scowling as the liquid washed over the edges of the mug. He sighed deeply before answering. "Landry."

"General, this is Agent Barrett."

Landry frowned at urgency oozing out of his voice. "Agent Barrett. What can I do for you?"

"Is Colonel Carter there?"

"Right here? Nope. Sorry. Must have the wrong number."

Barrett sighed. "I mean is she earth-side?"

Landry's frown deepened. "Is there a problem I should know about?"

"Yes, sir. She has very powerful people looking for her, General," Barrett told him in a rush. "And they don't have her best interests in mind."

Landry's frown deepened. "How do you--"

"Look," Barrett said. "If she's off-world, keep her there. Send her a message, tell her to stay put for the time being."

_That could be a problem,_ Landry mulled. "I'll do what I can," he assured him.

"No, sir," Barrett said, his teeth clenched. "You don't understand. If she can't stay where she is, send her somewhere else. Earth isn't safe for her, not right now."

"This is the most secure facility on the planet, Agent," Landry reminded him. "Are you telling me even the SGC is off-limits?"

"Yes, sir," Barrett sighed. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

Landry's eyes widened. "Tell me what you know."

"I can't right now, sir, I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm leaving for Colorado Springs in twenty minutes. I'll tell you everything then."

* * *

Jack gripped Sam closer to his chest and buried a kiss in her hair. The firelight flickered and threw red-gold hues over the foliage and his colleagues faces. Teal'c, Daniel and Mitchell conversed softly opposite them, SG-4 sat around their own fire just behind that trio; Captain Caise stared into the glowing embers at the base of the fire. 

"How's your mom doin'?" Jack asked her softly.

Caise looked up, surprised. "Uh, all right for now, sir," she told him. "I was supposed to go see her before this mission came up." Her eyes widened. "Not that I--"

"Oh, hush," Jack said, waving away her apologies. "You didn't want to come and you don't understand why you're here."

"Sir," she began to protest.

"No, no," he said, "I understand. It's all right. You can be bitter. You do good work, you're allowed bitter."

"Thank you, sir." She regarded him a moment. "With respect, sir, why was I chosen for this mission? There are other candidates much more qualified than I am."

Sam looked up. "There is going to be a major accident at Hancock and Pike's Peak this morning at 0824."

Caise frowned. "Sorry, ma'am? What does that--" She stopped, her eyes growing to saucers. "That's on my way to see my mom," she whispered. Looking to Sam, she said, "You mean I--"

Sam nodded.

Caise's head grew too heavy for her neck, and she gazed down at the ground. After a moment, she looked up, her eyes glowing in the firelight. "Thank you, Colonel."

Sam smiled. "You're welcome, Captain."

"If you'll excuse me, sir, ma'am. I'd, uh, like to get some rest." Caise nodded to each of her superiors in turn and ducked into the smallest of the nearby huts, her mind still a storm.

"I wasn't sure you wanted her to know," Jack said.

"It's to her benefit," she told him softly. Looking towards the hut the captain just entered, Sam winced, her thoughts becoming tangled in the ferocity of Caise's mental maelstrom. Pressing the heels of her hands soundly against her eyes, she forced herself out of that storm, telling herself there was little she could do to ease the woman's burden.

_The air thudded around her. Eyes gleamed in darkness, unblinking and hushed. She heard footsteps, fear dripped from her lips._

_A baby wailed._

_Gunshots resounded on all sides._

_Bullets ripped holes in the fabric of the universe._

_...seeping, flooding, the universe was flooding..._

The ground quaked as Forta pawed the ground; Sam fell back into herself, blinking rapidly to clear the atrocities from her eyes. She gripped Jack's hand in hers, her eyes drifting shut as he began to rub her back.

After several moments, he said, "I see what you see. Not as clearly, I don't think, and not all of it, but...enough."

She kissed the back of his hand. "Tenae." Sighing, she closed her eyes, words and syllables flying before her, their definitions melding, their sounds taking shape. "I know," she choked. "You have the gene."

"The Ancient gene."

She nodded. "Et we're corus." She dug her fingernails into her scalp and groaned.

"Hey," Jack breathed, covering her hands with his. "It's all right." Gathering her to his chest, he said, "Let's turn in, get some sleep. You gotta be exhausted."

Sniffling, she silently agreed and began untangling herself from his limbs. "Nos sola..." Wetting her lips, she began again, "We only have a few hours."

"That's a few hours we have to sleep, then," he told her, his hand warm at her back.

She led them towards one of the huts, her fingers interlacing his, her eyes staring through the doorway and to the valley of watchful ferra below.

* * *

Agent Barrett barreled out the doors of Petersen Air Force Base, his attache case clutched to his side, his cellphone jammed to his ear. "Yeah, I know, I'm sorry," he rattled off, watching as Becky scanned the thoroughfare for their ride. "I won't be back for another couple days," he said, scowling. "I took personal time." 

"Malcolm," Becky called, holding open the door of a black SUV. "Ride's here."

"Gotta go." He hung up and jogged over to the car. Opening the driver's side door, he briefly surveyed the large black man behind the wheel. "Thanks," he said, smiling. "We'll take it from here."

The man frowned. "I have orders to take you to Cheyenne, sir."

"Which is great and I appreciate it," Barrett assured him. "But I'm accustomed to driving myself."

"He's a bit of a control freak," Becky said. "Always kicks out his drivers."

"But, sir," the man protested. "I have my--"

"I know," Barret told him. "And orders are very important. I'll see to it that you're not reprimanded." Barrett held the door open and waited for the driver to exit the vehicle. He did, though slowly. "I'm sure you'll be able to get a ride to wherever you were going."

"Cheyenne, sir."

"Lucky you. They're back and forth from here all the time." Barrett hopped behind the wheel and buckled himself in. "Grand Central Station practically." He moved to close the door, then paused. "Can I get your name? I want to make sure you're in the clear."

The man straightened, his eyes shifting slightly. "Madson."

Barrett nodded. "Madson. Good name." Sliding his sunglasses on, he continued, "Thanks for understanding, Madson."

As the doors slammed shut, Becky regarded the retreating back of their would-be driver. "They're getting sloppy," she said.

"Or we're getting better," Barrett countered. "Keep an eye on your mirror."

"Since when have you been all cloak and daggery?" she asked, glancing in her side mirror and then the rearview.

"Since my driver in Denver tried to kill me this morning," he said, merging onto Platte Avenue. "Kinda clued me in."

Becky's eyes widened. "Must be some assignment."

"It's not an assignment," he said. "I owe a friend."

Becky frowned. "Your superiors don't know you're here, do they?"

Barrett cast her a dark look and reached into his bag. Handing her a tattered volume, he said, "My superiors are the ones trying to kill me."

* * *

_Thanks for reading. :)  
_


	5. Chapter 5

_Please see chapter one for disclaimer._

_If you haven't read the updates to chapter four (posted 10/9/06), please do so to save yourself some confusion. :)_

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter Five**

**by Mabyn**

* * *

Dying embers still burned red in the fire pits when Sam emerged from their hut two hours later. Daniel, Mitchell and Teal'c had retreated to their beds long ago; two members of SG-4 lay sprawled on the ground, sleeping beside their vat of glowing ashes. The waking sun back lit Monveras in the distance, turning the peaks dusty purple, deep red. 

She moved silently, her bare feet skimming sticks and pebbles, her body evading the breezes lest the absence of rustling leaves alert her companions. Ahead, Forta waited, flanked by two of her sisters, a long garment draped across her back.

_For you_, the ferra told her. _A gown worthy of your station._

Sam bowed her head in thanks and quickly donned the garment. It all but leapt onto her body, embracing her like water, the fibers shimmering, seeming to move in the early glow of morning. As the gown wrapped itself around her, peace wended its way into her chest followed closely by profound certainty, a heady resoluteness.

_It likes you,_ Forta said, smiling.

Sam looked to her friend, her lips quirked, her gown brilliantly lighting her features. "The feeling is mutual."

_It is the Vesta Luma,_ Forta told her, turning towards the rising sun. _The gown of the priestess._ She regarded the huts, the sleeping bodies still nestled within their beds. _Your corus awakens._

Jack emerged from the doorway of their hut as Sam turned. He squinted in the young light, scrubbing his hands across his face before flipping his cap onto his head.

"Whoa," he whispered, his eyebrows arching as he fully realized her wardrobe. "Nice," he said, his eyes scanning her frame as he meandered towards her. "You look...wow."

A blush crept over her cheeks and she ducked her head to hide it. "I have to go," she told him softly.

He stretched and his back cracked. "Okay," he yawned. "Where are we headed?"

She kissed him and rested her forehead against his. "You're not allowed in Aedes Luma," she whispered.

"Oh," he muttered, looking at their joined hands. "Can I, uh, go with you until you get to this...llama place?" He tightened his cap with fluttering hands. "I mean, if not, that's fine, I guess." His lips quivered in a small smile. "I'm not used to saving the universe, at least not all of it at once. If I gotta sit this one out, I'll live."

Sam nodded, the unintended implication of his statement sobering her. But she smiled at him. "You want Teal'c and Mitchell to come as well."

He shrugged. "Never hurts to have back-up." When Forta indignantly stamped her hoof, his eyes clipped to hers. "Not that you wouldn't be able to take down armadas of bad guys," he said quickly, warily. Turning back to Sam, he said, "And Daniel would be crushed if he couldn't come along. We're bound to see rocks."

"We are." Sam paused and considered the proposition. While she would rather her friends not accompany her―the probability of danger was remote, but misfortune was always possible―she would appreciate their presence for the companionship more than anything. Should anything happen, they would be unable to offer protection; she would have to protect them. Still, they believed in her, loved her―that in itself was a breed of protection, and one she to which she cleaved.

She nodded at last. "Etiam." She looked up at Jack, her eyes glinting in the growing light. "But you get to wake them up."

* * *

He had reduced tidy stacks of notes and reports to a whirlwind of paper in under twenty seconds. While there were few passersby at this early hour, he ensured his profanities were muttered, though his throat longed to hurl them at the walls of his office. 

The Book was gone.

Dimly he realized it was of little consequence; he had long ago memorized the relevant chapters and verses.

But the Book was gone.

If the Book was gone, it wasn't here. If it wasn't here, it was somewhere else―_with_ someone else. Someone had taken his Book; someone knew about his Book.

Someone knew.

He slammed his desk drawer shut, his hands clenching his head, his face twisted in a grimace.

The Book was of little consequence, he repeated. He could procure another. There were millions in the galaxy.

Millions.

But only two on Earth.

Two.

More than the Book, he had to find her.

She was beyond time, on the edge of existence.

It was impossible.

"Hallowed are the Ori," he muttered, fingering the small stone around his neck, remembering the tenets, the soothing words of the Book cascading back to him.Vehemently, he repeated, _"Hallowed are the Ori."_

Nothing was impossible.

He would find her. He had to find her.

He was enveloped in a flash of pure, white light.

* * *

"Where the _hell_ did you get this?" Landry asked, his eyes widening as he took the Book from Barrett. 

"Area 51, sir," Barrett told him as he stood. "I found it along with several hundred pages of detailed reports about Colonel Carter. Dated two weeks ago."

Landry looked up from his perusal of the Book. "She was missing two--" He stopped, his mouth falling agape as the implications hit him. "Tell me you're not serious."

Barrett shook his head. "I was investigating Doctor Kierken for possible connections to the Goa'uld infiltration. He'd been erratic, secretive. I gained access to his office." He pulled a sheaf of paper from his case. "This is just some of what I found."

Frowning, Landry took the papers and began flipping through them, his face darkening with every page turned. "How many people have you told about this?" he asked at last.

"You and my assistant, Becky." When the general raised his eyebrow, he added, "She has top level clearance, sir." Barrett sank into his seat, leaning towards Landry, his elbows on his knees. "But they know, whoever 'they' in this situation are, the higher-ups, I have no idea. All I know is they're powerful―very powerful." He paused and wet his lips. "Colonel Carter wasn't meant to make it out of that room alive, sir. Doctor Kierken was supposed to kill her if this―_procedure_ didn't go according to plan. Obviously, he didn't." Scooting closer to the general, he continued, "You have to get a message to Carter, let her know what's happening on our end."

Landry sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose tightly. "That might be a problem, Agent."

"Sir?"

"From what I understand of their current mission―which isn't a whole hell of a lot to be perfectly honest," he said, the sheaf of papers wilting in his hand as he pegged Barrett with a heady look. "We have a gate address, of course. Problem is, I have no idea when they are."

"_When_, sir?"

Landry glanced at the clock on the wall; fifteen minutes until his next scheduled appointment. He settled back into his chair. "Let me tell you a little story," he began.

* * *

"Don't suppose you could whip up some coffee or something, could you, Sam?" Daniel grimaced at the rising sun and pulled his hat down to shield his eyes from its rays. 

She smiled and shook her head, but stopped walking long enough to fall in beside Daniel. Watching her expectantly from behind drooping eyelids, he started when she reached for his head.

"Whatcha doin'?" he asked, his eyes shifting warily―and then widening. "Wow," he muttered as exhaustion flooded out of him, leaving his body in droves. His surroundings sharpened, his brain focused, his muscles strengthened; he had never felt more alert or rested. "Thanks," he said, smiling broadly. "That's way better than coffee."

"Me next," Mitchell said, stepping up behind Daniel, all but pushing him out of the way. "Jackson might end up shot if he's the only one awake this morning."

"You didn't have to come," Daniel countered. "Jack gave you the option."

"A choice between helping save the universe and staying in bed isn't my idea of a choice," he muttered as Sam pressed her fingers against his temples. "That one's pretty self-explanator―Whoa!" Mitchell's eyes flew open as effects of Sam's ministrations coursed through his body. "Okay, that's cool, that's definitely cool." He punched the air several times in rapid succession. "Bring on those bad guys."

Sam turned to Teal'c who politely shook his head. "I am well, Colonel Carter."

"You sure?" Mitchell asked, shaking out his limbs. "This is like having an I.V. Of Jackson's coffee."

"Then I must insist," Teal'c said. "I am well."

Daniel frowned. "I think I'm offended."

"Don't sweat it," Mitchell told him, slapping his arm. "Your black caffinated gruel ain't for everybody."

"That's for damn sure," Jack grumbled. "Daniel got coffee duty that first mission to Abydos. Never seen Kawalsky spit a quasi-liquid that far that fast."

"You guys wouldn't trust me with anything else," Daniel protested. "You didn't even trust me to get us back--" He stopped as Sam gasped, her eyes wide and gleaming. Before he could ask her if something was wrong, her face broke out in a euphoric smile.

"Sona," she whispered, her fingers fluttering to her cheeks. "Audita sona. Sic decorae." A breeze tangled the folds of her dress, rippling it, and the sun glimmered off the pale silver fabric.

Daniel jotted down her words, his eyebrows knitted in a frown. "Singing," he said. "She hears singing. It's 'so beautiful.'" Looking up from his notes, he briefly scoured their surroundings for a source of the sound Sam heard. Finding none amidst the fields of blowing grasses and wildflowers, he exchanged confused glances with the remaining members of the team.

_It's the stone you hear, _Forta said coming to rest at Sam's shoulder. _It's calling for you. It's not much further now._

Eyes gleaming, Sam grabbed Jack's hand. "Adveha," she said, continuing forward towards the Monveras. "Adveha."

* * *

Forta's assurances proved true. Within twenty minutes, a great stone structure loomed ahead, its doorway like a gaping mouth. The structure's main body looked like it had been hewn―or grown―out of the foot of the Monveras. A deep blue river meandered past the door and several water birds ducked in and out of its ripples. Sam informed the trio that they could not continue further. 

"Aedes Luma est inconcesa ut forae," she said, an apology written on her tone. She could not help but hum as the music of the stone wafted back to her. Its volume had grown the closer they came to Aedes Luma, the birthplace of the Orsa Calax.

"The, uh, house of light," Daniel said, his pen skipping over his notes, "is...forbidden, closed to, I'm guessing 'forae' means 'outsiders.'" His look decidedly darkened at the implications and Jack was almost certain he heard his friend mutter a profanity under his breath.

"We're just supposed to let you go in by yourself?" Mitchell asked, squinting at the structure. "Sounds like a bad plan to me."

"I said that," Jack muttered. "Or have." He drew a breath, held it for several seconds and surveyed his fiance. "We don't have much of a choice, though." Turning to the ferra, he said, "Besides, they'll go with her, watch her six."

Mitchell grumbled something unintelligible, but faded back a few steps, obviously resigned to waiting.

"You sure we can't get closer?" Daniel asked, his eyes hungrily roaming the face of the doorway. "I'd love to--"

"Daniel," Jack placated. "There are plenty of other buildings on plenty of other planets."

"But this--"

"Ah! You can go explore something old when we get back," Jack told him. "This is Sam's show. She says wait, we wait."

Daniel tried to fight the scowl forming on his face, but was only partially successful.

Shaking his head at his friend, Jack turned to Sam, his hands cupping her shoulders. "You be careful in there," he muttered, disquiet settling in his eyes. "And remember my rule about dying. As a whole, I disapprove."

Sam smiled and leaned up to kiss him. "Amata si," she whispered. She glanced over her shoulder at Aedes Luma, her insides quivering, begging her to go forward. But she turned to Jack. "Exspecta," she told him. "Vigila."

"Wait," Daniel supplied. "Watch."

"Will do," Jack assured her before leaning in for one last kiss.

And then she turned and began walking away from him, the ferra at her sides.

* * *

_Is the Book:_

_a) a copy of the Space Corps Directive Manual  
_

_b) a copy of The Feminine Mystique_

_c) a preview copy of Sam's book on "theoretical" wormhole physics_

_d) other_

_Thanks for reading! _


	6. Chapter 6

_Please see chapter one for disclaimer._

_I apologize for taking so damn long to get this (shortish) chapter up. We just added another muse bunny to our family, so I've been trying to get everyone to play nicely together. Not an easy task with three stubborn muse bunnies, I tell you what. Little brats can be fluffy pains in the miktas. Good thing they're so gosh darn cute. :)  
_

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter Six**

**by Mabyn **_  
_

* * *

"Barrett."

"Hey, Mal. It's Scott." Major Greggs removed the burnt DVD from the drive and slid it into an envelope marked 'Disc 14.' "Just finished uploading those files to the main server. They need to go through quarantine, but you should be able to access them in ten or so."

Barrett nodded and took a deep drink of his luke-warm coffee. God, he was tired. "Thanks, good work. Find anything interesting?"

"Loads," Greggs said and inserted another DVD into the burner. "Doc had a whole 'nother harddrive of data we found―most of it's readings, charts and other med shit about Colonel Carter." He paused and scratched his jaw, his brow furrowed in ambivalence.

Barrett frowned. "And..." When Greggs didn't immediately reply, his stomach clenched, his knuckles tightening around the handle of his mug. "Scott?"

"I ain't a doctor or nothin'," Greggs said at last, his voice strained. "But from the looks I got from Michelle―our team's uber-geek--"

"Yeah, I know Michelle."

"Yeah, well," Greggs exhaled and rubbed the heel of his hand against his eye. "Things don't look too good for Colonel Carter. At least, not in the long run."

Barrett felt his stomach hollow out; his ears started to ring. "What do you mean?"

"Like I said, I ain't no doctor--"

"But Michelle is--"

"She only saw the files for a couple minutes," Greggs explained. "She even said it was out of her league, didn't know what to make of it." A notice box popped up on the computer screen; he clicked 'okay' with more vehemence than necessary. "All I'm sayin' is that...is that there's enough info there to give you the answers you're looking for. An' if there ain't, maybe you ain't askin' the right questions, know what I'm sayin'?"

Barrett sighed, his head cradled in his free hand. "Yeah," he muttered. "Thanks, Scott."

"It'll be all right, man," Greggs told him. "We'll see ya for cards when you're back in town."

"Sure thing," Barrett said.

The connection died in his hand.

* * *

The foyer of Aedes Luma unfurled at her feet, crystalline lamps igniting as she stepped towards them, bathing the walls in a soft blue glow. Lilac danced through the air on breezes hardly felt; sweet, sweet drafts wafted through her nostrils, tasting like honeysuckle. The stone floor warmed her bare soles as if it was heated from the inside. Looking up, her eyes widened at the natural stone mosaic. Water nymphs, priestesses and regal godesses and queens danced with one another, their faces free of blemishes and strain, their long tresses dressed and flowing, covering their nakedness.

They were her sisters.

In this place of her legacy, she felt at peace. She allowed herself a moment to swim in this contentment, this assurance of sisterhood that spanned millennia, before succumbing to the Orsa Calax' insistent pull.

But even as she walked down the corridors, the Ferra at her sides, she felt the warmth of her spirit-kin follow her and she smiled.

* * *

He blinked. Once. Twice. He rubbed his eyes.

His office had evaporated to be replaced with stone walls, their faces lit by dull blue light. He wrinkled his nose at the spicy sweetness that permeated the air―he had never been one for fragrances. Clutching his briefcase to his chest, he gasped as cold steel licked his cheek and clumsily hurled the object away from him.

The sword clattered as it hit the ground.

Breath coming in short, shallow busts, he crept towards the blade, adjusting his glasses to accommodate his dilated eyes. The blade glowed. At least, it appeared to. But it could be a trick of the light, his eyes were still adjusting to the dim environment and the lamps flickered haphazardly, throwing their beams everywhere. It was difficult to make an astute judgment.

Perhaps it was just a reflection.

But as he inched closer to the weapon, he realized that the blade was indeed glowing. Not brightly, not enough to light his path, but gently, consistently and with purpose.

Soft footsteps echoed down the corridor, cutting his perusal of the blade short. Wrapping his bony hand around the hilt, he drew the weapon to his chest and stepped into shadow near an expansive doorway. The woman entered his view and he silently gasped as two humongous horses dutifully followed her, their heads bent low in respect. How the giant animals made no sound, he didn't know. Their hooves, combined with their massive weight, should have produced a slight clip against the stone floor at least. But nothing, no sound, no rocking of the tiles, no signs of their presence were detectable.

He drew a deep breath as they stepped from his view and clutched the sword to his chest. He was an instrument of the gods, given a sacred weapon for a sacred duty. Her blood would run like water.

He would not fail them. Not again.

* * *

A shiver raced across Sam's skin as she entered the sanctum of the Orsa Colax. The room was large, rounded, the walls' stone tiles meticulously carved and placed with the utmost care. Mnemosyne's fountain stood in the center of the room, water streaming from its six tiers. Beyond the fountain in an alcove, under a stream of light falling from the ceiling, the Orsa Colax sang.

Sam passed her fingers under the constant cascade of water in respect and reverence as she passed the fountain. After whispering a short blessing, she continued past the fountain, her feet forgetful of the floor and flying towards the Colax.

She knelt before it, this stone that had seen the change of every time, the birth and death and rebirth of the human race, of every race. The stone that would be their grace. Hardly daring to breathe, she reached out a trembling hand and laid her palm over its smooth surface. She gasped, her eyes falling closed. An intense rapture, deeper than any she had ever known, coursed through her veins, pulsed through her heart. Aedes Luma faded from view and she was flying, falling and leaping all at once; through the atmosphere, through fields of stars, underwater cities, cities on clouds, on mountaintops, on the other side of silence.

The stone shivered a warning pulse and she slid back into herself. She rose and the stone was around her neck, beating faintly.

A small, wiry man, his green eyes wild with confidence, stood on the other side of Mnemosyne's fountain, a longsword clutched in his hand, the tip trained on her heart.

"Doctor Kierken," she said, hearing the silence shatter around them like glass.

His eyes widened and the sword tripped a bit in his hand. "You know my name."

"We spent many days together," Sam told him. Far from being bitter at her captivity, she almost felt the need to thank this poor man for what he had done. But he would not hear it, she knew. Say what she would, he would not hear her. "You do not belong here."

Doctor Kierken straightened and his eyes turned venomous. "It is you who do not belong anywhere!" he said. "I made you what you are and my creation is not pleasing to the gods."

Sorrow sat in the pit of Sam's stomach and she could not hold the pity from her eyes. "Your gods are small and weak," she told him. "Their time is drawing to an end."

"Lies!" Doctor Kierkin shouted. "You are an atrocity! A blemish on my work for the gods! They have ordered your destruction!" The blade quivered in his hand, but he did not move.

Sam considered him a moment before speaking. "Out of them will come one, the destroyer of evil, a priestess of fire and water."

"Do not quote the Book to me!" Doctor Kierken cried, his knuckles paling white around the hilt of the sword, his other arm flailing behind him.

"Their cities will be torn from their roots," Sam continued undaunted. "Trampled to the ground, they will be as fleeting as dust." Taking a step towards him, her eyes gleaming in the dim light, she said, "She will rise from these ashes, a sacrifice unto herself and bring the beginning of the beginning, as it should have been, as it will again be." Her shoulders straightened. "The wrongs will be righted, the balances evened, the truth restored." She smiled. "And you cannot stop it."

The sword trembled in Doctor Kierken's hand, his eyes still wide, but now flushed with doubt. "You speak blasphemy."

Sam shook her head. "I speak from your holy book." She paused and drew nearer to him, the Ferra with her doing the same. Soon, Mnemosyne's fountain was at her back, the water churning in its haste to run. "Out of them will come one," she whispered. "A destroyer of evil, a priestess of fire and water."

Flames erupted from the fountain behind her, the water spilling from the tiers now ablaze like oil.

Sam pegged him with placid blue eyes. "I am that priestess."

* * *

"This is really killing you, isn't it?"

Daniel glared at Mitchell before turning back to his long distance perusal of Aedes Luma. "That place has gotta be hundreds of thousands years old," he muttered.

Mitchell grinned. "I mean, having to be all the way back here when all the goodies are up ahead―that's gotta be tough."

"Shut up."

"No, seriously, I'm asking," Mitchell said. "If you--"

"Children," Jack warned. "Don't make me separate you. I'll parcel out the prairie if I have to."

"Field," Daniel told him. "It's more of a field."

"I was thinkin' vale," Mitchell said, gesturing to the wildflowers and tall grasses. "Aren't those the ones that--"

He stopped short and listened. A distant rumbling, like thunder only louder, echoed across the field. "You guys hear that?" Daniel squinted and listened; Jack rose from the ground, his hands digging into his hips.

"Yeah," Jack answered. "What is that? A storm?"

"Clear day for a storm," Mitchell replied.

"Perhaps it is an earthquake," Teal'c intoned.

"Uh, guys," Daniel said, squinting towards the hill's crest behind them.

"Don't think it's an earthquake," Mitchell said. "Unless they--"

"Guys," Daniel said, grabbing Jack's arm and pointing towards the hill. "Move."

"What?" Jack turned and squinted towards where he was pointing. His eyes widened. "Oh boy..."

Hundreds of Ferra flooded the hillside behind them, earth flying from their hooves in clods as they raced over the field and directly towards where the three men were standing.

"They are _so_ not stopping!" Mitchell shouted as he began to run full tilt out of the stampede's way. From the gasped expletives and dull thumping footsteps behind him, Mitchell could tell his three companions were matching his pace. A blurred wall of massive bodies hurled towards him out of the corner of his eye; there was no way he could clear their path before they collided, not with the pace the ferra were setting.

The rumbling of hooves grew louder, closer, and sweat dripped into his eyes. He could hear them breathing.

Their footsteps shook his bones.

Their breath raced down his neck.

He could not outrace them.

With a cry he could not stopper, Mitchell threw his body as far as he could, his arms cradling his head as he rolled on impact.

But as the deluge overcame him, he was not crushed. Hazarding to open a single eye, he looked up and saw enormous bodies leaping his, their hooves easily clearing his prone form and landing several feet away. The ground shook beneath him, he labored for breath, but dared not move. Looking towards Aedes Luma, he thought he saw the rock hewn doorway gape to accommodate the entering ferra; he shook his head to clear it and then was certain. The doorway was expanding.

As the last of the ferra dodged his body, he slowly rose, his body quivering and covered in uprooted grass and dirt. Looking to his companions―similarly awed and shaken―he said, "That was...an experience."

"Indeed," Teal'c answered, his eyes wider than usual as he squinted towards Aedes Luma. "One I hope never to have again."

"Ditto," Jack muttered as he brushed debris from his BDUs. "They could've _said _they weren't gonna kill us. Woulda been polite."

"On a positive note," Daniel said, righting his glasses and accounting for his various papers and pens. "I'm really very awake now."

Mitchell smirked. "No shit."

* * *

_ Gasp! A swear! Sorry to any virgin ears I might've corrupted. :)_


	7. Chapter 7

_See chapter one for disclaimers._

_Apologies in advance for the upcoming deluge of exposition. Hopefully, I'll be able to better work it in during revisions. _

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter Seven**

**by Mabyn **

* * *

Doctor Kierken's eyes grew as the fountain erupted in flames, his pupils dimly reflecting the brilliance of the blaze. His palms now coated with a fresh coat of sweat, he readjusted the sword in his hand, wiping the other hand across the lapel of his blazer. "You―you do not scare me!" he shouted, infuriated when the woman smiled. "You are an abomination! You must be destroyed!"

She nodded. "Yes," she said, "eventually. But not by your hand." She paused and listened as the ground began quaking, the blazing water in the fountain rippling in time with the dull, grinding thuds. "Your fate approaches," she told him simply.

His eyebrows bowed. "Wh-what do you mean?"

The walls began shaking.

"It's at the main door."

"Tell me what you mean!" Doctor Kierken shouted; he did not notice the sword falling from his hand. "What's happening?"

Several of the loose paving stones began rattling against their brethren.

"It's in the hall."

"Stop it!" The words exploded from Doctor Kierken's throat, his fists clenched, his veins popping maroon, his knuckles sallow. "Tell me what you mean!" His eyes could open no wider without bursting from his skull, yet his quick breaths seemed to inflate him with every passing moment. He could not exhale, not enough to keep from suffocating.

Her eyes licked fire as she looked deeply into him and he felt she could see everything, everything within him and everything without. Nothing was hidden from her; she knew truth in its perfection, she knew the frailties of every world, of each galaxy. She knew the Names of Eternity; she called the Universe by its secret name.

And then he knew, but did not accept.

"Is it really you?" he gasped, one pale, wrinkled hand, aging rapidly and reaching for her. He wanted to stroke her cheek, kiss her lips, devour her eyes before he died. "Is it really you?"

Sam nodded. "You know it is," she told him, "but you refuse to believe it."

"I-I do believe," he told her, feeling time mauling his body―his skin dripped from his bones. "I do," he repeated, unable to see through his own lies. "I do," he whispered, his eyes wide and locked on hers as Ferra poured into the room. "I do," he breathed.

A deep sigh coursed from her lips, enveloping him in tendrils of moist heat. She did not believe him.

But she was, he thought as the massive bodies of the Ferra surrounded him, she was.

Heat boiled his stomach, his intestines, consumed him from the inside out and he knew then for certain.

She was the Priestess and the fulfillment of the Ovmata's prophecy.

Sharp crackling filled the air, like wood being split, and he knew his bones were splintering. But he felt nothing.

The Ferra crushed him, their bodies like warm breathing boulders made flesh as they forced the air from his lungs. His vision fogged by a deep red haze, he looked to her and melted into her crystal blue eyes. _ Forgive me_, he thought. _Forgive me._

She nodded. He had accepted his fate, the role he had to play in the redemption of the universe. _Always, _she told him with her eyes.

And then he submitted to the darkness beckoning him, a smile floating on his lips.

* * *

"Doctor Kierken's dead," Jack said suddenly, his eyes distant.

"Who's Doctor Kierken?" Mitchell asked, looking from the skies overhead to the General.

"He's a linguistic specialist at Area 51," Daniel said, his brows frowning. "He's been working on deciphering the Book of Origin since we brought back an extra copy from P3R-829. He's made some pretty unsettling correlations, but we have no way of knowing if any of them have any merit." He stopped and gazed at Jack. "Why do you think he's dead?"

"I don't," Jack told him, plucking several blades of grass from the ground and tossing them aside. "I know he's dead." Gesturing towards Aedes Luma, he continued, "Sam met him in there. That's where all the―horse things were headed."

"To kill him?" Mitchell sat up and righted his hat on his head as Jack nodded.

"Why would these creatures bear Doctor Kierken any ill will?" Teal'c asked.

"And how the hell did he get here?" Daniel asked, his eyes wide. "We're not even in the known galaxy. And if this place is really outside of time and built by the Ancients--"

Mitchell perked up. "It's built by the Ancients?"

"Kinda goes without saying I thought," Daniel muttered to Mitchell's chagrin. "If Temporasa was built by the Ancients and hidden for whatever reason, it'd be almost impossible to get here without knowing its exact location."

"Sam used all nine chevrons," Mitchell added. "We haven't met anyone with that kinda know-how."

Jack looked towards the gaping mouth of Aedes Luma and a breeze ruffled his hair. "Except the Ori," he said softly.

* * *

Sam grinned as a mass of pure white energy ascended from the tangle of Ferra, Doctor Kierken's new form twisting and churning as he began to fully realize himself. Excluding Forta and her two sisters, the Ferra gradually filtered out of the chamber, their task completed for the time being.

_I have...ascended? _Doctor Kierken asked, shocked, but Sam shook her head.

"No," she said. "Not entirely." She considered him a moment, and could see his human form hidden behind the swirling mass. "You will help us defeat the Ori."

_They are destroying the universe,_ Doctor Kierken replied immediately, his voice firm. _They cannot be allowed to continue._

Sam smiled and took a step towards him, her hair radiant under the brilliance of Doctor Kierken. "Then there is something you must understand. As it now stands, ascension is more curse than blessing; an eternity of waiting and watching." Her eyes harshly glinting, she unconsciously grasped the Orsa Colax in her hand. "It is a selfish existence requiring the shedding of our humanity―all that makes our race good. It is an eternity for which you and I are ill-suited." Hope erased the glint in her gaze. "But it is not meant to be like this. Those who have ascended are living shadows, a fraction of what they could be. And they believe they are powerless to stop it."

Sam gripped the edge of Mnemosyne's fountain, running her thumb along the edge of smooth stone. The fountain sang to her, harmonizing with the music of the stone around her neck. "They do not act for fear of becoming like their Ori brethren. They fear the power within themselves, the power of all ages they are _meant_ to possess and _use_ to the benefit of those beneath them." She paused and waited as Doctor Kierken considered her words.

Finally, he flashed blindingly and asked, _What can I do?_

* * *

"Horses ahoy," Mitchell muttered, absently slapping Daniel's arm as he stood.

Daniel sighed and looked up from his notes. "You could've hit my other arm," he said, scribbling out several words and rewriting them. "The one I _wasn't_ using to write."

"Sorry." A low whistle meandered from Mitchell's lips. "With all the excitement before, I didn't realize how many of them there are." Hundreds of Ferra streamed from the mouth of Aedes Luma, their pace much less frantic than it had been prior. Coats of strawberry roan, foamy white, chestnut, dapples, jet black and stormy gray followed the path through the river and towards the four men, their wet bodies glistening in the sunlight.

"Oh, I did." Jack said, shielding his eyes from the sun as he watched the Ferra approach. "I think the ground shaking like a 4.2 kinda gave it away."

"Indeed."

Jack stared past the gathering Ferra to the doorway into Aedes Luma, his vision blurring as he focused on Sam's presence. She was all right, he knew, alive and well. She had kept up her end of their bargain. But no startling revelations or even dull insights came to him. He tightly closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He would know if something of import happened. He had to.

* * *

_That is the stone?_ Doctor Kierken asked, and Sam smiled to herself at the eagerness in his voice. He had undoubtedly read about the Orsa Colax in the Book of Origin and, despite its other horrendous inaccuracies, its description and claims about the stone were true. In breathless wonder, he muttered, _This is the stone that set everything in motion._

"Yes," Sam told him. "It is the heart of Elaine of Astolat, a stone of great power derived from its inception and augmented by the living energy of Nimue, the Guardian of Water, and her sister, Morfaye, the Priestess of Fire. They were the last Guardians before the Great War when the Ancients and Ori were made distinct."

Doctor Kierken regarded the stone for a moment. Then, his form dulling for a moment, asked, _The Ori knew of you. How?_ Immediately, he retracted his question, saying, _Forgive me. Now is not the time for stories._

"Now is the perfect time for this story," Sam corrected. "In order for our next steps to make sense, you must know." She drew a deep breath before continuing.

"The prophecy in the book of Ovmata is corrupt. Before the Great War began, Lasot, the leader of the faction now known as the Ori, came to Nimue, a seeress of sorts, seeking a prophecy that would work in his favor." She smiled wryly. "That he did not receive and was infuriated. At that moment, Elaine, his sister, found him. He did not know she had pledged herself to the Sapienta, the small group of Alterans opposed to both the Ori and the Ancients. She begged him to reconsider, to cease in his selfish and childish pursuits."

She paused, sorrowed, and closed her eyes a moment before continuing. "He did not and cursed her. She was devastated. Later, she sacrificed herself so that one day the evil unleashed by her brother might eventually be contained once more."

_How do we contain it?_ Doctor Kierken asked.

She looked through his form to the humanity beneath. "Brother and sister must be reunited," she said softly. "The stone must be plunged into the fire burning in the City of Celestis."

* * *

_Notes on Arthurian Mythology: _

_Elaine of Astolat is also known as The Lady of Shalott, as immortalized in Tennyson's poem of the same name. She is said to have fallen in love with Sir Lancelot when the knight was visiting Astolat to watch a jousting competition. While he hadn't been planning on participating, Elaine begged him to wear her sleeve (scarf) while competing. Because Lady Gwendolyn, the woman with whom Lancelot was in love, was in attendance, he refused. But Elaine kept on begging and he eventually gave into her wishes. He competed in disguise so that Gwendolyn would not recognize him. When Lancelot left the competition with Gwendolyn, Elaine despaired. She is said to have died from unrequited love. (Obviously, being the fiery feminist that I am, I had to give her a more noble purpose.)_

_Nimue is one of the three identified Ladies of the Lake. According to some retellings, she has a complicated history with Merlin. She's also related to Mnemosyne, the personification of memory in Greek mythology. She's the daughter of Gaia and Uranus, and the mother of the nine muses._

_Morfaye is a shortened version of Morgan La Faye, another of the three Ladies of the Lake._

_Here ends today's mythology lesson. :)_


	8. Chapter 8

_See chapter one for disclaimers._

_Apparently my life didn't get the memo that I have a freakin' story to finish. (Grrr.) Sorry 'bout the delay, guys. _

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**by Mabyn **

* * *

Jack felt her growing nearer with every breath he took. He heard the gentle fall of her footsteps and her muted conversation. Perhaps Doctor Kierken was not dead, not entirely. He squinted towards the doorway.

"There she is," Daniel muttered, gathering his notes. He looked closer and added, "Who's with her?"

A small wiry man with untamed white hair walked beside her between an escort of Ferra. He seemed decidedly out of place in his tweed blazer and worn loafers, his shirt partially untucked, his glasses slightly askew.

"That's you in thirty years," Mitchell said, glancing askance at Daniel. "Must be a time machine in there or something."

Daniel ignored him, but glowered when he heard Teal'c chuckle softly. Peering closely at the man, he said, "I think that's..."

"Doctor Kierken," Jack supplied.

Mitchell turned from the approaching entourage to Jack. "Thought you said he was dead, General."

Jack nodded. "He is."

"Looks pretty good for a dead guy," Mitchell mused, rubbing his chin. "Unless he's a zombie."

"In which case," Teal'c said, palming his zat, "he will not get far."

Mitchell cocked an eyebrow. "You've seen _Shaun of the Dead_ how many times now?" he asked.

"Six."

"He's ascended," Daniel said suddenly and turned to Jack. "That's the only explanation. He died and ascended."

"Maybe," Jack told him. He shouldered his pack and began walking towards Sam. "Come on. Too much speculation makes me hungry."

"But we're not supposed to--" Daniel began to protest, but was cut short.

"It's all right now," Jack called over his shoulder.

Daniel frowned. "Why now?" He watched Jack as he covered the ground with long strides, wanting to follow, but still wary of Sam's earlier warnings. "How do you--" he began, but cut himself short, a slight scowl crossing his face. "We gotta work on our communication," he mumbled and pushed his hands deeply into his pockets.

"Wish you had a book or a piece of pottery or something," Mitchell sighed, appearing beside him. "Something you could translate and share with the rest of the class."

Daniel regarded him for a moment, his eyes narrowed. "You're serious."

"Hell, yeah," Mitchell told him. "You get so excited, you can't help babbling on about it. Granted, we gotta put up with a lot of babble to get to the pertinent stuff, but it's generally worth it."

Watching Jack as he approached Sam, Daniel said, "Sam's usually that way, too, though."

"Yeah," Mitchell agreed, "but since going all Ori Destroyer, she's not too keen on the babble."

"Is there a reason we are not following General O'Neill?" Teal'c asked, his eyebrow cocked as he regarded his teammates.

"Just makin' sure no big-ass Ancient laser cannon appears and blasts him to pieces," Mitchell told Teal'c over his shoulder. "Sam gave us some pretty heady warnings before."

"Yeah," Daniel added. "Reminds me too much of The Neverending Story when Atreyu confronts the Southern Oracle."

"Do you not believe yourself worthy, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c asked, a small smile flickering across his lips.

"Worthy, yes," Daniel told him. "Willing to risk being fried to prove it, no."

Teal'c nodded and audibly exhaled. "Then we are in agreement."

Mitchell nodded. "Good to know."

"Yep," Daniel said. "When it comes down to it, we're all just a _little_ bit chickenshit."

"Indeed."

* * *

Forta whickered softly as Jack approached, his long legs easily brushing the tall grasses aside. Without looking up, Sam felt his nearness like an enveloping breeze, sweet and deliciously subtle. She said nothing, but kissed him soundly as they met.

"Glad to see you, too," he said, his lips quirked in a small smile. Turning to Doctor Kierken, he added, "I see you found a friend."

Sam nodded and turned to the doctor. "Doctor Kierken, meet General Jack O'Neill."

Doctor Kierken grasped Jack's proffered hand. "Your corvus," he said. "I've heard much about you. Through the grapevine; not just from Colonel Carter."

"Oh, don't believe everything you hear," Jack muttered, adjusting his hat. "Just the good stuff."

"Will do," the doctor said, smiling, the deep wrinkles of his skin reminding Jack of an old elm tree. It seemed to him that the doctor had just awoken from a centuries long sleep; his eyes were sparkling, refreshed, his gait energetic, his gestures lively. The old man was past sixty, possibly seventy, yet he had the spirit of a man a third his age. He, of course, attributed this to Sam. After all, she had reverted his knees back to their youthful selves.

"Where to now?" Jack asked, turning to Sam. "An appointment of intergalactic significance? A rendezvous with destruction and peril? Or perhaps a nice coffee break."

She smiled, but shook her head. "I can't tell you."

"You know how I feel about surprises."

Sam gazed past him to their friends ahead. "You can't go with us," she told him, her voice soft and remorseful. "None of you can."

"That's what you said last time." Jack smiled and tried to make her meet his eyes. She wouldn't and his gut twisted.

"This time, it's true," she said. Finally, she willed her gaze to match his, their blue depths tumultuous and frostbitten. "If you followed me, I'd lose you," she whispered, her palm reaching up to cup his cheek. "I couldn't bear that. Not yet." She paused a moment, her eyes distant. "But part of you can come," she said at last.

He frowned, wary. "Which part?"

He found her soft chuckle heartening, and the smile that flitted across her face warmed him. "Your mind," she said.

"Oh, _that_," he said, brightening. "Take it. Hardly use the thing anyway."

She tried to look admonishing, but failed, her face cracking in a smile. As she removed her engagement ring, Jack couldn't help uttering a sound of protest. But the look she gave him calmed him and his interest piqued when she placed the article in her palm and stretched her hand towards him.

"Locum vestra trado mei," she said and he could see her silently chastising herself, struggling for words he would comprehend. An audible breath rushed past her lips and moisture lined her eyes as she reached for his wrist and placed his hand over hers. Her skin was softer than he remembered and he was suddenly aware of his callouses.

As her eyes slipped closed, Jack could see the tension ease from her body. Then he frowned. The ring grew warm under his hand, as if it were a smoldering coal near death. And then the warmth permeated his skin and enveloped him; they were the only ones alive in the universe and he reveled in it. She spun images before his eyes, emotions, sensations of such depth it was like he had never felt or experienced anything prior to this moment with her. And then he fully realized that she knew everything. He gasped as his mind reeled under the sudden influx of hers, and his eyes flew open and he tumbled into her gaze.

"Perfecta," she whispered, reluctantly drawing her hand from his and placing the ring back on her finger.

Jack shook his head slightly to clear it. "That was cool," he told her, looking from her to his hand, his fingers still tingling where he had contacted her skin. "What'd we just do?"

_Sum in vestra mens quod vos es in mei. _The words were disembodied, but he clearly recognized Sam's voice.

"Whoa," he muttered, his hand flying to his head. "How'd you--"

_Auditum mea sententia._

"Really?" he asked, his eyebrows bowing under his incredulity. "The stuff I'm hearing is what's going on in your head?"

She smiled and shrugged. _Non tota. _

"Good call," he told her. "Hearing everything in your head would probably make me a crazy man." His eyes narrowed a bit and he asked, "Can I―Can you hear what I'm thinking?"

Sam nodded, but then wavered slightly on her feet, one of her arms stretching towards him. He grasped her to his side and gasped―an armada of elephantine ships, white as pearls, destroyed a world he had never before seen. He heard distinct screams, though they echoed, bouncing off the chambers of his skull.

"The Ori," Sam gasped, her fingernails biting into his shoulder. "We must go. Now."

Jack immediately looked towards the rest of SG-1; the land seemed to blur for a brief moment and he blinked purposefully to clear his vision. His mouth gaped when he opened his eyes. They were at the foot of the Stargate. SG-4 and Captain Caise were with them in various states of confusion.

"How the--" Mitchell began, turning in place. "...hell." He looked to Sam, his eyes shifting. "So, if you could just―zap us there, why'd we have to walk to that Aedes Luma place?"

She ignored him. "You must go," she managed to whisper, her fingertips cradling her head. "Tell General Landry what has happened. Doctor Kierken and I will rejoin you when we're able."

"Hey, whoa," Daniel said, taking a step towards her. "You're not gonna try to fight the Ori on your own, are you?"

"We have to," Sam told him, her frustration mounting. "And the longer you insist on arguing about it the more difficult the fight will be."

Daniel opened his mouth to protest, but then thought better of it.

"We all will do what we must to defeat the evil in this universe," she said. "You have done all you can while at my side. Your belief will continue to sustain me." Her eyes closed a moment before opening wider than oceans, her pupils flashing a brilliant blue as the Stargate sprang to life, the light of the event horizon shimmering across her features. "Now go," she told them, her voice harsh and grated.

Her eyes fell into Jack's. _Amata si, Corvus,_ she told him and sent him the image of a long, lingering kiss between them. _Exspecta mihi, amata mihi._

Jack nodded and swallowed harshly. _I will._ And then he turned from her, his eyes on the ground as he stepped through the horizon.

* * *

"Incoming wormhole," Sergeant Harriman called as the first chevron burst to life. As the iris unfurled, his hands blurred over his keyboard, his brow knit. Below him in the embarkation room, the defense teams sprung to action.

"Sergeant," General Landry barked, appearing suddenly at the sergeant's elbow. "Get that iris closed!"

"Attempting to, sir," Harriman told him, scowling at the computer screen in front of him. "But the computer isn't accepting my--"

The IDC box flicked to the screen. Harriman frowned. "Sir? I think it's SG's 1 and 4."

"You _think_?"

Harriman indicated to the screen in front of him. "There's no IDC, sir, just a message."

"What's the message say?"

"It's SG's 1 and 4."

Landry sighed, but chuckled to himself. "Thank you, Sergeant."

"Yes, sir."

As Landry began descending the steps towards the embarkation room, he grimaced--Colonel Thad Mathers stood at the foot of the stairs, his smirk, permanently affixed the General thought, firmly in place.

"An incoming, sir?" Mathers asked, his voice an innocent tenor, but Landry knew better.

"Yes indeedy, Colonel," Landry told him as he brushed past, the Colonel all but striding on his heels. "SG's 1 and 4 are enroute."

"Excellent," Mathers said, smoothing the front of his shirt. "I'm looking forward to meeting Colonel Carter. And seeing General O'Neill again, of course."

"Yeah," Landry said. "Jack is quite the character,"

Mathers nodded. "I hope he's able to put aside his personal feelings regarding Colonel Carter. It'll make my job a hell of a lot easier."

Landry chuckled. "I'm sure it would." Turning to the Colonel, he couldn't help smirking as he added, "But I wouldn't bet on it."

Any reply Mathers might have had was eclipsed by SG-1 clomping down the ramp, followed closely by SG-4 and Captain Caise. Landry frowned. "Jack, you're one short."

Jack turned and surveyed the SG teams. "Doh," he muttered as he turned back to Landry. "Knew I forgot something."

"Where's Colonel Carter?" Mathers asked, deep grooves wrinkling his forehead. "I thought she accompanied you on this mission."

Daniel, Mitchell and Teal'c stopped short and regarded Mathers', their suspicion neatly concealed. "She did," Mitchell told him.

"She's currently saving the universe," Jack said and checked his watch. "She was, however, kind enough to pencil me in for dinner tonight." Turning to Landry, he said, "Hope that won't be a problem, Hank."

Landry smiled and shook his head. "Not at all."

"Good." Jack turned to Mathers', openly assessing him. Mathers' shifted slightly under his superior's scrutiny. "And who, may I ask, is this fine gentleman?"

"General O'Neill, Colonel Thad Mathers," Landry said and noticed Jack's sudden shift in demeanor.

Mathers, however, remained unaware of Jack's immediate disdain. "General, sir," he began, "it's an honor to finally meet you." He extended his hand.

Jack looked at Mathers proffered hand and then the man's face. "I'm sure it is," he said, his eyes cold and Mathers' hand withered back to his side. Turning to Landry, Jack said, "I suggest we debrief now, General."

"Certainly," Landry said, gesturing towards the side exit. When Mathers turned to follow them, Landry stopped him. "This briefing is for SG's 1, 4 and myself only."

"But I'm supposed to--" Mathers began.

"Supposed to assess Colonel Carter's condition," Landry said, his voice hinting at his frustration. "Yes, I know. But Colonel Carter isn't here."

"Sir, aspects of her current condition will be discussed, I'm sure," Mathers argued.

"And you'll be made aware of any relevant information, Colonel," Landry assured him. "I have no intention of interfering with a presidential order." After searing him with a final, warning look, Landry turned and strode towards the briefing room.

"Yes, sir," Mathers mumbled, far too low for anyone to hear.

* * *

_Hopefully the next chapter won't be so long in coming._


	9. Chapter 9

_See chapter one for disclaimers._

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter Nine **

**by Mabyn**

* * *

"Mathers, head of Internal Security and Defense Appropriations," Jack muttered to Daniel and Mitchell as they climbed the stairs to the briefing room. "It's a new bunch of morons to keep in line for Homeworld Security."

Daniel leaned against one of the leather chairs before sitting. "If he's part of Homeworld Security, isn't he under your command? I mean, you _are_ in charge of that branch of defense." When Jack grunted, his eyes rolling subtly, Daniel paused. "Aren't you?"

Jack sighed and sunk into the worn leather, his hands massaging his face. "Yeah. But there's a bunch of power mongering, maniacal jackasses in Washington who'd like to see that change." He leaned back in his chair and resisted the urge to put his feet up on the table. "I'd rather face a gaggle of Gould or Ori or even those damn bugs instead of politicians and idiot generals."

Mitchell nodded. "You can't shoot politicians or generals."

Jack smiled acerbically. "Exactly. Thank you."

"So," Daniel drawled as General Landry took his place at the briefing table. "He's here to see Sam."

Landry nodded and settled himself into his chair. "Specifically to see her, yes."

"There's a surprise," Jack muttered. A bright light flashed across his mind and he could see the spires of a golden fortress gleaming in the distance. Sam stepped into view, the fabric of her dress flowing vibrant silver under the tired sun, her hair billowing in a light breeze. _...urbs malaum...city of evil,_ he heard her whisper. _Morbeum astram...the sickness of the stars._ He was standing next to her, his feet planted on a floor of liquid glass that rippled without breaking.

When he looked up at the city again, his mouth gaped. The gold had tarnished, the walls had crumbled and the brilliant spires had cracked under the red glare of the sun, now dying. The city screamed and in that scream he heard the wail of a million souls as they were wrenched from existence. The stench of a slaughterhouse assaulted him and the glass beneath his feet ran thick with blood.

"Jack?"

A hand on his arm jarred him back to the briefing room. His eyes widened as Daniel's face wavered in front of him. Pressing his fingertips into his eyes, he said, "Yeah, sorry," and rolled his shoulders in an effort to clear his head. But the image of Sam walking a glass lake of blood stood firm in his memory.

"With all due respect, sir," Mitchell was saying, "Do we really have to worry about them? We are talking about the woman who's currently taking down the Ori. After she kicks their asses, a couple a' feds aren't even going to phase her."

"But she was different on Temporasa," Daniel pointed out. "She was more in control of her abilities. Here," he trailed of for a moment as the image of her babbling incoherently, terrified and cowering in the infirmary flooded back to him. "Here, she was--a mess."

"There's more raw power there," Jack told him, unsure of how he knew, but confident in his estimation. "And it's calmer, fewer distractions." His eyes blurred slightly and his mind whirred, as if he were sorting through an infinite data bank for one specific phrase. "The closer she is to Aedes Luma or the Flames of Enlightenment," he said softly, "the more power and control she has."

Silence eased gently into the briefing room, but Jack was unaware of it. Sam was speaking to Kierken, her voice hushed. S's hissed and t's whispered and her footsteps fell like autumn leaves, inching ever closer to the gold and gleaming city.

The tarnished and decaying city.

"How do you know?" Daniel was asking him and before he could think to respond, he was saying,

"I know."

Vaguely he heard Landry's voice, followed by the lulling cadence of Captain Caise.

"I see her," he said softly, almost breathing the words instead of speaking them.

Daniel was shifting in his seat, the fabric of his pants grating against the leather―the dead skin, the decaying skin―and Jack looked to him. "She's almost there."

* * *

The City of Celestis towered in front of her and she trembled at the disquiet of the Doci inside. He felt her, he was in her mind as she was in his, though his efforts to garner information were clumsy, foolish. He fumbled his way around the perimeter of her defenses, leaving fingerprints in his wake, disturbing the settled dust around the edges.

His footprints filled with her sorrow.

"They know we're coming," Kierken said.

Sam nodded. "Yes."

A morose chuckle writhed from his throat. "I was hoping to surprise them."

Pausing, she gazed up at the glowing wall before them, its pinnacle buried in the sky, and she said, "When you know eternity, there are very few surprises." Her voice was hollow and resigned; if she had still retained the capacity, she would have been frightened.

But then, she knew eternity. And there were no surprises.

She held her hand out to her companion; he gently interlaced his fingers with hers, his weathered skin softening under her touch. After a shared glance, divine in its implications, they entered the City.

* * *

"Almost where?"

"The City."

Voices melded together until they became one sonorous tone, beckoning him away from the precipice of her mind―that place, transcendental, beatific, unparalleled in dominion―his confidence, his bliss. He shut them out and focused the bright light of his energy on that mind―funneling, churning, channeling―reducing himself to nothing so that she may become everything.

That mind.

Perfect. Holy. Unbegotten.

_I am here,_ he assured her.

_I have never doubted,_ she said and reached her hand towards him. They touched and the darkness seared his eyelids, but her eyes were crystal doors, wholly open, begging him through the threshold.

_Come,_ she whispered through the encroaching darkness. _Follow me._

_I am here, _he repeated. _And I will follow._

* * *

"JACK!" Daniel sprung from his seat as his friend's body slumped to the ground, the man's eyes pouring open and depleting his pupils. Captain Caise breezed to the general's side, her fingers flying to Jack's pulse as she demanded someone call a med team.

But Mitchell's hand was already cradling the phone. "Med team to the briefing room stat!" he all but shouted into the receiver and slammed the phone down without waiting for a response.

Behind him, Jack groaned, his eyes still wrenched open, his pupils unnaturally dilated. "No..." he breathed, his chest heaving, air grating into his lungs.

Daniel stared into his friend's eyes and swore he saw oceans frothed pink and a flash of Sam's face consumed by flame. "Jack?" he whispered and gently shook the man's shoulder. "Jack, answer me."

And then Jack's fingers were entrenched in Daniel's shirt and Daniel was pulled roughly downwards until Jack's breath stung his cheek. His friend's eyes were oceans, oceans teeming with life if life equated emotion, and Daniel struggled against the current, his mind flailing, desperate to stay afloat.

"No drugs," Jack breathed, and Daniel started at his desperation. "They give me drugs," Jack continued, his voice strained and distant, "Sam dies." Flames exploded behind Jack's eyes and the undertow swirled at Daniel's feet. "I won't let them kill her."

"I promise," Daniel assured him, his hand warm on Jack's neck.

Jack's eyes rolled white as he stumbled back into Daniel's gaze. "Good," he muttered, before succumbing to the darkness again.

* * *

The City's floors washed cold under her feet and immediately began to prey upon the life-blood of millions flowing inside of her, circling it like vultures. The very structure of this City fed upon the souls harvested by the Ori; they fortified it, allowed its integrity. Sam's jaw flexed in the dim light as she erected barriers around her essence. The City growled and pitched beneath her, jabbing furiously at her defenses and, finding no weakness, screaming at her strength of will.

"You have angered the Ori." The Doci filtered through the candlelight, his gray robes cast dull orange as his eyes flashed red. Turning to Doctor Kierken, his face twisted and he said, "You have betrayed us."

"Your first born betrayed you long ago," Sam told him, resisting the sorrow the rose in her throat. "Before his rebirth, he knew of our coming. He did nothing to stop it."

His lips fluttering to smile, the Doci stepped closer, the floor shrinking beneath him. "There is nothing to stop," he said, now only several meters from Sam and Doctor Kierken. He reeked of decaying flesh, but Sam did not flinch. "You feed on lies where truth once flourished," he continued. "Your lies will see your own destruction."

"And your arrogance will see yours."

A resonant chuckle wound out of the Doci's throat. "Our sister was weak, her company shameful. The old woman, the mother, the maiden―fools, turned to stone by their own hands."

Sam sensed the power of the Ori feeding him, and then she could see it―a fine red thread, floating mid-air, wending from the Chamber and looping around Doci. She glanced from the thread to the Ori housed in the Doci. "You have seen eternity," Sam returned, the Colax flooding her with assurance, with power. "And it does not belong to you."

Flames licked the Doci's pupils and the ground trembled as the doors leading to the Flames of Enlightenment blew open. Heat washed over her, and she did not flinch, but stared deep into the core of the Ori's anger. "Eternity," the Ori told her, "belongs to those powerful enough to stop it."

* * *

"He's regaining consciousness," Captain Caise said, her hands resting on Jack's shoulders. "General O'Neill?" she asked. "General, can you hear me?"

Jack groaned and his eyes flicked back and forth before clamping shut. "She's there," he muttered, wiping a hand across his face. "She's there," and he saw her clearly, her silver robes, her fingers tightly wound around the Colax. Doctor Kierken to her left, the Doci ahead of her, speaking. But she was looking past the Doci to the flames living in the chamber behind him. Her gaze like water, streams, oceans, but the fire would not be extinguished and roiled under her scrutiny like steam.

"Sam," he whispered, but was unaware of it.

"Jack," Daniel called, shaking him.

And she was striding past the Doci, his shoulders proud, his hands wanting to stop her but unable. But she stopped of her own accord.

And her finger was riding a thin red strand. The Doci was stopping, stopping, his eyes pulled wide, his mouth gaping.

The thread shifted blue under her skin―an inch of blue sputtering yellow where it intersected red.

"No..." was spinning from his lips, contorted, and he was staring at her, aghast, disbelieving

and She was closing Her hands around the strand

and the Doci was screaming

and Dr. Kierken was glowing

and the thread was crumbling in Her hands

and blue dust was falling from Her fingers like rain

and She was smiling

but he could taste her sadness

as She turned away--

as She was crossing the threshold of the Ori's chamber--

as She was coming closer to the brink of her--

and he felt the Colax searing into Her chest.

He heard a voice he did not know say, _Now is the time, my sister._

and She turned away.

she turned away.

He could not follow; his limbs lay lifeless; his heart slowed.

but Her name rushed from his lips in one gust.

_I love you, _she told him.

And--

--

The Stone weighted her palms.

--

"We need to get him to the infirmary."

--

The fiber thong snapped against her nape.

--

"Where's the med team?"

--

She knew eternity.

--

"_No drugs."_

--

Elaine wept.

--

"General, can you hear me?"

--

Nimue whispered.

--

"Jack!"

--

Morfaye sang.

--

"She's dying," he gasped.

--

"You, who would be destroyers," Sam breathed, "must now be destroyed." And she stepped into the mouth of the Flames.

--

"NO!" Jack cried and hurled himself away from the hands of the medics.

* * *

The Colax split into three halves in Sam's hand and pure white light poured from the fissures and married the flames. Sam hung in the center of the Chamber, her arms uplifted; she opened her mouth and Morfaye's clear, piercing tones breezed from her throat, embracing the Flames of the Ori and drawing them towards her. The Flames struggled against each other, battling for space, madly pressing against the force of Morfaye's song. They screamed when the music pushed them backwards, corralling them towards the lifeblood living now―_right now_--in their center.

She was poison. That lifeblood was poison. And they thought―_wait_.

She was whispering, _Quisnam exsitiam pessa ire pereaum. _

_Quisnam exsitiam pessa ire pereaum. _

_You, who would be destroyers, must now be destroyed._

Quisnam exsitiam pessa ire pereaum. They stopped struggling and listened as the Lifeblood (_not poison, not anymore)_ whispered the words over and over, her voice flowing around them, warming them, drawing them closer and closer and _(oh!)_ closer to her chest, her skin (_soft)_, her eyes _(glass)_, her hands (_gentle)_ that would cradle, soothe and ease.

They had felt nothing for millennia.

And they thought they should not go so easily as this―they that had molded worlds and races; they who were revered, worshiped, feared; they who brought plague as easily as rain; they who would be Gods.

But they had felt nothing for millennia. And her skin was so soft, her hair smelled like summertime―they could remember summertime―her eyes looked like pure blue winter skies, the sun dazzling off of the snow.

They fit in the palm of her hand and they molded themselves to her skin's crevasses. She nuzzled them gently and they sighed. Millennia―such an _awfully_ long time...

Tears welled in her eyes.

_-Brother,_ Elaine called.

Lasot saw her approaching and ducked his head; his calves withered and he fell to his knees.-

Tears crossed her bottom lashes.

-Elaine stood before him. _Brother, _she whispered.

_I am not worthy to be called your brother_, Lasot told her.-

Tears slipped down her cheeks.

_-But you _are_ my brother, _Elaine said. _And I love you._

He looked up at her, hesitant to meet her eyes. _Still?-_

Tears rounded the curve of her jaw.

-Elaine smiled. _Always.-_

And her tears extinguished the small ball of flame the Ori had become.

* * *

He willed her to breathe. _Dammit, Sam, _he shouted. _Get the hell up!_

She wasn't listening. She couldn't hear him. She wasn't breathing.

He had seen her destroy the Ori―such a harsh word for their gradual, gentle lessening. He had seen her eyes roll back in her head, her limbs fall limp and her body sink lifelessly to the floor. He had seen her chest still.

He had heard her heart stop beating.

He had felt a part of himself die.

_But she was in his galaxy, he knew._

_She had yet to die._

Her ring glowed and he remembered. Time and space meant nothing.

* * *

_If you find any errors, pleasepleaseplease bring them to my attention. (Still working without a beta.) Thanks. :)  
_


	10. Chapter 10

See chapter one for disclaimers.

_Author's Note: Silly me. 'Beloved' is coras, not corus. This is why writers need editors. Also, thank you for all the wonderful reviews! Talk about day-makers! I hope this chapter lives up to expectations._

* * *

**My Andromeda**

**Chapter Ten**

**by Mabyn**

* * *

Forta looked to the heavens and smiled as the universe began to breathe again. _It is done_, she whispered, moisture lining her deep brown eyes as she felt the stars shudder in place. And then she focused on the pinpoint, its light gently ebbing, laying prostrate in the City. The Priestess―the Priestess and the knowledge of eternity. She was still burning. 

Silently she beckoned her sisters and together they banded around the still, silent form. As long as her light still glistened, the Priestess was not lost. As the Ferra gathered, the great barrels of their bodies began expanding and contracting in unison, their breath forming a translucent cocoon around Sam, protecting her, fortifying her as they were able.

_She must not be lost, _Forta told them and they sighed as one. _Her Coras will come, as Perseus to his Andromeda._

* * *

He willed her to breathe. _Dammit, Sam, _he shouted. _Get the hell up!_

She wasn't listening. She couldn't hear him. She wasn't breathing.

He had seen her destroy the Ori―such a harsh word for their gradual, gentle lessening. He had seen her eyes roll back in her head, her limbs fall limp and her body sink lifelessly to the floor. He had seen her chest still.

He had heard her heart stop beating.

He had felt a part of himself die.

_But she was in his galaxy, he knew._

_She had yet to die._

Her ring glowed, a hazy outline encapsulated her and he remembered. Time and space meant nothing.

* * *

"General O'Neill?" Doctor Lam called, crouching in front of him. "General, can you hear me?" His eyes were open and unblinking, his pupils unnaturally dilated. "You can't hear a word I'm saying, can you?" she muttered.

"He was calling for Sam earlier," Daniel told her as he watched his friend's unmoving form.

"He also said that she was there," Teal'c added. "Though I am not certain to where he was referring."

"The City of Celestis," Daniel said. When Teal'c, Lam and Mitchell glanced sharply at him in unison, he shrugged, his palms open. "Logically that's the place she would go. The sanctuary of the Ori, the―the belly of the beast, so to speak."

"Get the hell up," Jack muttered, his forehead creasing, his eyes fluxed with agony. "Get up."

Daniel's stomach twisted. "That can't be good," he said quietly and Teal'c nodded.

"You said he's in contact with Colonel Carter," Lam said, her eyebrow cocked.

Mitchell nodded. "Yeah, but don't ask how."

Lam frowned. That had been her next question. "His vitals are weak, but stable," she told them and rose from the general's side. "However, I don't know--"

"Oh, hello," Daniel interrupted and unconsciously stepped away from Jack's body; Mitchell and Teal'c followed suit.

Lam's eyes widened when she looked back at the general. "Oh my god," she gasped. While his body was still apparent, his outline―his substance had faded. Looking down at Jack, Lam could see the wall directly behind him, as if the general had been reduced to fog or a fine mist. Hesitantly, she stepped towards him and reached a hand out to touch his shoulder.

"Doc," Mitchell said quickly. "That may not be a great idea."

Lam nodded. "Probably not," she agreed, but kept moving anyway. Unconsciously wincing as her fingertips made contact with fabric, she sighed in awe. "Fascinating," she muttered, the texture of his shirt muted under her skin. "It's as if he's--"

"Not really here," Daniel said, his eyes distant and heavy lidded.

"You think that ring thing the general was talkin' about earlier has something to do with this?" Mitchell asked.

"Not something," Daniel told him. "Everything."

* * *

Jack gasped and the air he gulped like water sent waves of nausea spiraling through his system. "God," he muttered, ramming his eyes shut as he willed his stomach to still.

_We knew you would come. Your Coras is well._

He spun as quickly as he was able and found himself staring deeply into Forta's eyes. "Got here fast as I could," he sputtered, a hand lingering on his stomach. "You guys do this often?"

Forta smiled. _Space and time mean nothing to us. This, you are just beginning to comprehend. _

"I don't know how much comprehending has to do with it," he admitted. "I just..." He trailed off, his eyes wandering to Sam's fallen body and the hazy barrier surrounding her. He took a tentative step forward and then stopped, suddenly afraid to intrude.

_It is all right, _Forta assured him. _You are the only one able to enter the Priestess' Curata._

Jack frowned. "Why me?"

_You are Coras, _Forta said, her surprise evident. _That is why you have come, why you were **able** to come. _

Jack considered this a moment before turning back to Sam. "Is she―is she going to be all right?" he asked softly and was not surprised when a warm muzzle brushed his shoulder. Forta's breath immediately flooded him with comfort.

_We have preserved her body, _Forta told him. _There is little we can do for her mind. That is up to you._

Jack blanched. "Me?" he asked, his voice shaky in its disbelief. "God, she's screwed."

The walls of the chamber shook when Forta indignantly stomped, and Jack automatically leapt away from her massive form. She pegged him with an eye brimming with fury and he could not meet her gaze. _You doubt your power._

"I―well, I'm not really--" Jack began, but Forta cut him off with a sigh.

_Tell me your story of Andromeda and her Perseus. _She said.

Jack frowned. "Uh, Perseus flies in and rescues Andromeda from a big, nasty sea monster." Silence followed his telling and he realized that Forta was waiting for him to continue. "That's it," he told her, somewhat shamed, but not knowing why.

_What? _Forta looked aghast. _**That** is all your story entails?_

Jack shrugged and unconsciously backed up a pace. "Pretty much," he mumbled. "I got a friend who could probably tell you more."

Forta shook her head, her mane flying like silk, and gently pawed the ground. _Andromeda, _she said, _was the very first of the great Priestesses. A powerful woman, revered for her wisdom and control of mind._

"An Ancient?" Jack asked and immediately regretted it.

_No,_ Forta scoffed. _Those you call Ancients are weak and feeble-minded. They know eternity, yet do not know their place in it. They're mere children._

Jack's lips pursed, forming a thin line, but he did not speak further.

_When the city of Atlantis was under siege--_

"That's an Ancient city," Jack interjected. Forta looked at him askance and he had the distinct impression she was glaring at him. "Sorry," he muttered.

Forta whickered softly and then continued. _When the city of Atlantis was under siege by the Kraken, a race of monstrous beings not unlike the―the "nasty sea creature" you mentioned, Andromeda fought to free the Atlantians. But no army or battalion could accompany her, and no weapon would penetrate the Krakens' thick shell. _Forta paused, gazing at Sam, and Jack did the same. Her chest rose and fell steadily now, her face free of lines carved by worry and fear, her hair boldly gleaming under the dim yellow light.

_Andromeda went alone, _Forta told him. _And alone she defeated over one hundred thousand Kraken with the power of her mind._

Jack whistled softly. "That's quite the mind," he mumbled.

Forta nodded. _Not unlike your Samantha's mind or the feat she has accomplished here. _Forta paused and looked at him, and Jack shifted uncomfortably when he felt her looking through his skin, through his skull and into his thoughts beneath.

_The battle sapped all of Andromeda's strength and she lay at the bottom of the sea for hours, barely breathing and hardly alive. Perseus, her Coras, found her, and though he did not have her power, he rescued her and nursed her until she was well again._

Jack frowned. "Question," he said. "How exactly did Perseus 'rescue' her?"

_He brought her to himself, _Forta answered, smiling slightly.

"Right," Jack sighed and scrubbed his hands across his face. "He didn't drown?"

_No._

"Then how did he--"

_He found a way._

"You could at least _try_ to be helpful," Jack groused and again regarded the hazy pod surrounding Sam.

Forta chuckled and nuzzled him affectionately. _I do not have your answers because I am not the Priestess' Coras._

Jack sighed. "Again, not helpful."

_Bring her to yourself._

"How?"

Forta whickered and began to turn from him. _Perhaps, _she said, _if you stopped questioning and began acting you would discover the answers you seek._

Jack stopped, his chest heavy. Gazing at Sam's face, he felt drenched in his sorrow and fear. "I don't―I don't want to hurt her," he whispered and the import of his admission weighed heavily on him.

_It is possible for her to remain here, unharmed and unchanged for eternity,_ Forta told him. _She would become myth and then legend and eventually be forgotten until the next great evil arises. _Forta paused and watched as Jack ran his fingers through his hair, sighing. _But I doubt she would want that. An eternity apart from you is not the eternity she had in mind._

Silence erupted in the space between them as Jack stared at his Coras, his eyes openly searching, struggling. _God, Sam, _he thought, _a little help would be appreciated. _

And then he stopped, silent, afraid to breathe lest he miss it again. A breeze ruffled his hair and his eyes widened.

_Jack..._

His eyes slipped closed as a smile overtook his lips. Turning to Forta, he whispered, "Thank you," before moving to Sam's side, slowing only when he contacted the haze surrounding her. He met with no resistance and immediately swept Sam into his arms. He turned back towards Forta--

But she was gone. And Doctor Kierken appeared in the chamber doorway, stopping suddenly when he saw Jack.

"General," he said, his eyebrows bowed. "This is a surprise."

Jack nodded. "For you and me both."

Doctor Kierken frowned and approached, his eyes never straying from Sam's unconscious form. "Is she all right?"

"She's alive," Jack told him. "That's more than I was expecting."

The doctor nodded. "The Doci has gone to spread the word of the Ori's defeat." He smiled, his green eyes twinkling. "When he learned of the false gods he served, he was rightly shamed. But he is eager to make up for his past wrongs."

"Excellent," Jack said. "That'll definitely save us some trouble."

* * *

"So, what?" Mitchell asked. "He's out of phase?"

Daniel shook his head. "No," he said. "I think this is more than that."

"You think." Mitchell sighed and hefted himself onto one of the infirmary beds.

"This is outside my area of expertise," Daniel protested and crossed his arms over his chest.

Mitchell frowned. "I dunno. You're pretty much an expert on all things strange, mysterious or abnormal." Jabbing a thumb towards the general's place on the floor, he said, "I think this qualifies as all three."

Daniel sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sam would know more about this than I would."

"Yeah, well, she's off kickin' Ori ass," Mitchell said. "Think she's kinda busy."

"Actually," Jack began, but Daniel's startled cry, combined with the clatter of medical instruments tumbling off of a bedside table, precluded his continuation. Jack stood by the far wall of the infirmary, Sam cradled in his arms and Doctor Kierken standing next to him.

"Jack!" Daniel exclaimed, his eyes bulging from their sockets, his glasses slightly askew. "You're―you're _here_." He absently heard Mitchell call for Doctor Lam as he watched Jack carefully lay Sam on the nearest bed, Daniel's jaw flexing as he absorbed her condition. "How is she?"

"She's alive," Jack told him softly and tenderly stroked her cheek.

"How'd you--" Daniel began, but Jack dismissed his question with a quick wave.

"Don't ask," he said, peering around Daniel as he visually scoured the room for the doctor. "No idea how I got there or back."

"Well, you are Coras," Doctor Kierken said.

Jack sighed. "So I've heard."

"And she bound you through the ring, didn't she?"

"Yeah," Jack said, his impatience seeping into his tone. "The implications of which are _still_ lost on me."

"It's very simple," Doctor Kierken told him. "She has bound your minds together. As long as both of you live, you will be able to communicate if you so desire."

Jack pursed his lips and was silent a moment before turning to Daniel. "We must have different understandings of the world 'simple.'" He drew a breath and turned back to Doctor Kierken, but was interrupted by Doctor Lam sweeping through the door.

"All right, people," she called, charging towards her unconscious patient and manhandling Jack from Sam's bedside. "Outta my way! Yesmin! I need..."

She continued to speak―her mouth moved―but Jack's vision had blurred, a small smile flitting across his lips.

He heard her yawn and felt her breath sail across his skin.

_Mornin' you,_ she said after a moment.

He grinned as Doctor Lam's voice swept closer to him. "...vitals are stable...matter of time...general?..."

But he wasn't paying attention.

_I love you, _he said.

She smiled and his memory saw her eyes sparkling, her head tilted back, her hair curling delicately around her face. _Amata si,_ she told him. _Coras, amata._

* * *

_This is the end of My Andromeda, but this story is not over. Look for a sequel entitled My Perseus in the coming week. I'm planning on using this story as one of my NaNoWriMo pieces.  
_


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